PART ONE.
THE PROLOGUE
AND APPENDICES TO
THE LORD OF THE
RINGS.
I.
THE PROLOGUE.
It is remarkable that this celebrated account of Hobbits goes so far
back in the history of the writing of The Lord of the Rings: its earliest
form, entitled Foreword: Concerning Hobbits, dates from the period
1938 - 9, and it was printed in The Return of the Shadow (VI.310-14).
This was a good 'fair copy' manuscript, for which there is no prepara-
tory work extant; but I noticed in my very brief account of it that my
father took up a passage concerning Hobbit architecture from the
chapter A Short Cut to Mushrooms (see VI.92, 294 - 5).
Comparison with the published Prologue to The Lord of the Rings
will show that while much of that original version survived, there was
a great deal still to come: the entire account of the history of the
Hobbits (FR pp. 11-15) in section 1 of the Prologue, the whole of
section 2, Concerning Pipe-weed, and the whole of section 3, Of
the Ordering of the Shire, apart from the opening paragraph; while
corresponding to section 4, Of the Finding of the Ring, there was no
more than a brief reference to the story of Bilbo and Gollum (VI.314).
In order to avoid confusion with another and wholly distinct 'Fore-
word', given in the next chapter, I shall use the letter P in reference to
the texts that ultimately led to the published Prologue, although the
title Foreword: Concerning Hobbits was used in the earlier versions.
The original text given in The Return of the Shadow I shall call there-
fore P 1.
My father made a typescript of this, P 2, and judging from the type-
writer used I think it probable that it belonged to much the same time
as P 1 - at any rate, to a fairly early period in the writing of The Lord
of the Rings. In my text of P 1 in The Return of the Shadow I ignored
the changes made to the manuscript unless they seemed certainly to
belong to the time of writing (VI.310), but all such changes were taken
up into P 2, so that it was probably not necessary to make the distinc-
tion. The changes were not numerous and mostly minor,(1) but the
whole of the conclusion of P 1, following the words 'his most mys-
terious treasure: a magic ring' (VI.314), was struck out and replaced
by a much longer passage, in which my father recounted the actual
story of Bilbo and Gollum, and slightly altered the final paragraph.
This new conclusion I give here. A part of the story as told here
survived into the published Prologue, but at this stage there was no
suggestion of any other version than that in The Hobbit, until the
chapter Riddles in the Dark was altered in the edition of 1951. With
all these changes incorporated, the typescript P 2 was a precise copy
of the original version (see note 7).
This ring was brought back by Bilbo from his memorable jour-
ney. He found it by what seemed like luck. He was lost for a
while in the tunnels of the goblins under the Misty Mountains,
and there he put his hand on it in the dark.
Trying to find his way out, he went on down to the roots of
the mountains and came to a full stop. At the bottom of the
tunnel was a cold lake far from the light. On an island of rock
in the water lived Gollum. He was a loathsome little creature:
he paddled a small boat with his large flat feet, and peered with
pale luminous eyes, catching blind fish with his long fingers and
eating them raw. He ate any living thing, even goblin, if he could
catch and strangle it without a fight; and he would have eaten
Bilbo, if Bilbo had not had in his hand an elvish knife to serve
him as a sword. Gollum challenged the hobbit to a Riddle-
game: if he asked a riddle that Bilbo could not guess, then he
would eat him; but if Bilbo floored him, then he promised to
give him a splendid gift. Since he was lost in the dark, and could
not go on or back, Bilbo was obliged to accept the challenge;
and in the end he won the game (as much by luck as by wits). It
then turned out that Gollum had intended to give Bilbo a magic
ring that made the wearer invisible. He said he had got it as
a birthday present long ago; but when he looked for it in his
hiding-place on the island, the ring had disappeared. Not even
Gollum (a mean and malevolent creature) dared cheat at the
Riddle-game, after a fair challenge, so in recompense for the
missing ring he reluctantly agreed to Bilbo's demand that he
should show him the way out of the labyrinth of tunnels. In this
way the hobbit escaped and rejoined his companions: thirteen
dwarves and the wizard Gandalf. Of course he had quickly
guessed that Gollum's ring had somehow been dropped in the
tunnels and that he himself had found it; but he had the sense to
say nothing to Gollum. He used the ring several times later in
his adventures, but nearly always to help other people. The ring
had other powers besides that of making its wearer invisible.
But these were not discovered, or even suspected, until long
after Bilbo had returned home and settled down again. Conse-
quently they are not spoken of in the story of his journey. This
tale is chiefly concerned with the ring, its powers and history.
Bilbo, it is told, following his own account and the ending he
himself devised for his memoirs (before he had written most of
them), 'remained very happy to the end of his days, and those
were extraordinarily long.' They were. How long, and why so
long, will here be discovered. Bilbo returned to his home at Bag-
End on June 22nd in his fifty-second year, having been away
since April 30th (2) in the year before, and nothing very notable
occurred in the Shire for another sixty years, when Mr. Baggins
began to make preparations for the celebration of his hundred
and eleventh birthday. At which point the tale of the Ring
begins.
Years later my father took up the typescript P 2 again. He made a
number of minor alterations in wording, replaced the opening para-
graph, and rewrote a part of the story of Bilbo and Gollum (improv-
ing the presentation of the events, and elaborating a little Bilbo's
escape from the tunnels); these need not be recorded. But he also intro-
duced a lengthy new passage, following the words (VI.313) 'but that
was not so true of other families, like the Bagginses or the Boffins' (FR
p. 18). This begins 'The Hobbits of the Shire had hardly any "govern-
ment" ...', and is the origin of most of section 3 (Of the Ordering of
the Shire) in the published Prologue, extending as far as 'the first sign
that everything was not quite as it should be, and always used to be'
(cf. FR p. 19).
Much of the new passage survived into the final form, but there are
some interesting differences. In the third paragraph of the section (as
it stands in FR) the new text in P 2 reads:
There was, of course, the ancient tradition in their part of the
world that there had once been a King at Fornost away north of
the Shire (Northworthy the hobbits called it),(3) who had marked
out the boundaries of the Shire and given it to the Hobbits; and
they in turn had acknowledged his lordship. But there had been
no King for many ages, and even the ruins of Northworthy were
covered with grass ...
The name Northworthy (for later Norbury) is not found in the Lord
of the Rings papers, where the earlier 'vernacular' names are the
Northburg, Northbury. See p. 225, annal c.1600.
The fourth paragraph of the section reads thus in the P 2 text:
It is true that the Took family had once a certain eminence,
quite apart from the fact that they were (and remained) numer-
ous, wealthy, peculiar, and of great social importance. The head
of the family had formerly borne the title of The Shirking. But
that title was no longer in use in Bilbo's time: it had been killed
by the endless and inevitable jokes that had been made about it,
in defiance of its obvious etymology. The habit went on, how-
ever, of referring to the head of the family as The Took, and of
adding (if required) a number: as Isengrim the First.
Shirking is of course a reduction of Shire-king with shortening (and
in this case subsequent alteration) of the vowel, in the same way as
Shirriff is derived from Shire-reeve; but this was a joke that my father
decided to remove - perhaps because the choice of the word 'king'
by the Hobbits seemed improbable (cf. p. 232 and note 25, and
Appendix A (I, iii), RK p. 323).(4)
The new passage in P 2 does not give the time of the year of the Free
Fair on the White Downs ('at the Lithe, that is at Midsummer', FR
p. 19), and nothing is said of the letter-writing proclivities of Hobbits.
To the mention of the name 'Bounders' my father added '(as they were
called unofficially)'; the word 'unofficially' he subsequently removed,
thus in this case retaining the joke but not drawing attention to it.
It seems to me all but certain that this new element in the text is to
be associated with the emergence of the Shirriffs in the chapter The
Scouring of the Shire - where the office is shown to have been long
established 'before any of this began', as the Shirriff Robin Small-
burrow said to Sam (RK p. 281). The fact that the term 'Thain' had
not yet emerged does not contradict this, for that came in very late (see
IX-99, 101, 103). I have concluded (IX.12-13) that Book Six of The
Lord of the Rings was written in 1948.
At the end of this passage on the ordering of the Shire, which as
already noted (p. 5) ends with the words 'the first sign that everything
was not quite as it should be, and always used to be', the addition to
P 2 continues (with a later pencilled heading 'Tobacco'):(5)
There is one thing more about these hobbits of old that must be
mentioned: they smoked tobacco through pipes of clay or wood. A
great deal of mystery surrounds the origin of this peculiar custom ...
From this point the remainder of section 2 in the final form of the Pro-
logue was achieved in P 2 with only a very few minor differences: 'Old
Toby' of Longbottom was Tobias (not Tobold) Hornblower (on which
see p. 69), and the date of his first growing of the pipe-weed was 1050
(not 1070), in the time of Isengrim the First (not the Second); the third
of the Longbottom varieties was 'Hornpipe Twist' (not 'Southern
Star'); and it is not said of sweet galenas that the Men of Gondor
'esteem it only for the fragrance of its flowers'. There is also a footnote
to the words 'about the year 1050 in Shire-reckoning':
That is about 400 years before the events recorded in this book.
Dates in the Shire were all reckoned from the legendary crossing of
the Brandywine River by the brothers Marco and Cavallo.
Later changed to Marcho and Blanco, these names do not appear in
the narrative of The Lord of the Rings: they are found only in the
further long extension to the Prologue concerning Hobbit-history
(FR p. 13) and in the introductory note to Appendix C, Family Trees
(RK p. 379).
For the history of the passage on pipe-weed, which began as a lec-
ture on the subject delivered by Merry to Theoden at the ruined gates
of Isengard, see VIII.36-9. After much development my father marked
it 'Put into Foreword' (VIII.38 and note 36).(6) - On Isengrim Took the
First and the date 1050 see VIII.45, note 37. When this addition to
P 2 was written the old genealogical tree of the Tooks (given and dis-
cussed in VI.316-18), found on the back of a page from the 'Third
Phase' manuscript of A Long-expected Party, was still in being.(7)
As has been seen (p. 4), in P 2 as revised the story of Bilbo and
Gollum was still that of the original edition of The Hobbit, in which
Gollum fully intended to give Bilbo the Ring if he lost the riddle-
contest (see VI.86). The curious story of how the rewritten narrative
in the chapter Riddles in the Dark came to be published in the edition
of 1951 is sufficiently indicated in Letters nos.111, 128 - 9. In Septem-
ber 1947 my father sent to Sir Stanley Unwin what he called a 'speci-
men' of such a rewriting, not intending it for publication, but seeking
only Sir Stanley's comments on the idea. Believing that it had been
rejected, he was greatly shocked and surprised when nearly three years
later, in July 1950, he received the proofs of a new edition with the
rewriting incorporated. But he accepted the fait accompli. Beyond
remarking that the full correspondence makes it very clear how, and
how naturally, the misunderstandings on both sides that led to this
result arose, there is no need to say any more about it here: for the
present purpose its significance.lies in the conclusion that the revision
of P 2 cannot have been carried out after July 1950. In fact, I believe
it to belong to 1948 (see pp. 14-15).
From the revised and extended text P 2, now in need of a successor,
my father made a new typescript (P 3). This was again an uncharac-
teristically exact copy. It received a good deal of correction, in the
earlier part only, but these corrections were restricted to minor alter-
ations of wording and a few other details, such as the change of
'Northworthy' to 'Norbury' and of the date of Bilbo's departure with
Gandalf and the Dwarves to April 28th (note 2). From this in turn an
amanuensis typescript was made (P 4), but this my father barely
touched. These texts both bore the original title, Foreword, Concern-
ing Hobbits.
The next stage was a very rough manuscript, P 5, without title (but
with Concerning Hobbits added later), and without either the section
on pipe-weed or that on the story of Bilbo and Gollum, which while
constantly moving the detail of expression further towards the final
form held still to the original structure, and retained such features as
the Shirking.(8) To convey the way in which the text was developed
(with minute attention to tone, precision of meaning, and the fall of
sentences) in successive stages I give this single brief example.
P1 (VI.311).
' And yet plainly they must be relatives of ours: nearer to us than
elves are, or even dwarves. For one thing, they spoke a very similar
language (or languages), and liked or disliked much the same things
as we used to. What exactly the relationship is would be difficult to
say. To answer that question one would have to re-discover a great
deal of the now wholly lost history and legends of the Earliest Days;
and that is not likely to happen, for only the Elves preserve any
traditions about the Earliest Days, and their traditions are mostly
about themselves - not unnaturally: the Elves were much the most
important people of those times.
P2 (as revised).
And yet plainly they must be relatives of ours: nearer to us than
Elves are, or even Dwarves. For one thing, they spoke a very simi-
lar language (or languages), and liked and disliked much the same
things as we used to. What exactly the relationship is would be
difficult to say. To answer that question one would have to re-
discover much that is now lost and forgotten for ever. Only the Elves
now preserve traditions of the Elder Days, and even their traditions
are incomplete, being concerned chiefly with Elves.
P5.
Yet plainly they are relatives of ours: far nearer to us than are
Elves, or even Dwarves. They spoke the languages of Men, and
they liked and disliked much the same things as we once did. What
exactly our relationship was in the beginning can, however, no
longer be told. The answer to that question lies in the Elder Days
that are now lost and forgotten for ever. Only the Elves preserve
still any traditions of that vanished time, but these are concerned
mostly with their own affairs.
To the manuscript P 5, however, my father added, at the time of
writing, much new material. One of these passages was that concern-
ing the martial qualities of the Hobbits, or lack of them, the existence
of arms in the Shire (and here the word mathom first appears in the
texts of the Prologue), and the 'curious toughness' of Hobbit charac-
ter. This was already fairly close to the published form (FR pp. 14-15),
and its most notable omission is the absence of the reference to the
Battle of Greenfields; the text reads here:
The Hobbits were not warlike, though at times they had been
obliged to fight to maintain themselves in a hard and wild
world. But at this period there was no living memory of any
serious assault on the borders of the Shire. Even the weathers
were milder ...
The original text of the chapter The Scouring of the Shire had no
reference to the Battle of Greenfields: 'So ended the fierce battle of
Bywater, the only battle ever fought in the Shire' (IX.93). In the second
text (IX.101) my father repeated this, but altered it as he wrote to 'the
last battle fought in the Shire, and the only battle since the Greenfields,
1137, away up in the North Farthing'. It seems a good guess that (as
with the passage concerning the Shirriffs, p. 6) the appearance of the
Battle of Greenfields in the Prologue soon after this (see below) is to
be associated with the writing of The Scouring of the Shire.
It is convenient here, before turning to the rest of the new material
that came in with the manuscript P 5, to notice a text written on two
small slips and attached to the amanuensis typescript P 4. This is the
origin of the passage concerning the founding of the Shire in the pub-
lished Prologue (FR pp. 13 - 14), but it is worth giving in full.
In the Year 1 (according to the reckoning of Shire-folk) and in
the month of Luyde {9} (as they used to say) the brothers Marco
and Cavallo, having obtained formal permission from the king
Argeleb II in the waning city of Fornost, crossed the wide brown
river Baranduin. They crossed by the great stone bridge that had
been built in the days of the power of the realm of Arthedain;
for they had no boats. After their own manner and language
they later changed the name to Brandywine. All that was
demanded of the 'Little People' was (1) to keep the laws of
Arthedain; (2) to keep the Bridge (and all other bridges) in
repair; (3) to allow the king to hunt still in the woods and moors
thrice a year. For the country had once been a royal park and
hunting ground.
After the crossing the L[ittle] P[eople] settled down and
almost disappeared from history. They took some part as allies
of the king in the wars of Angmar (sending bowmen to battle),
but after the disappearance of the realm and of Angmar they
lived mostly at peace. Their last battle was against Orcs (Green-
fields S.R. 1347?). For the land into which they had come,
though now long deserted, had been richly tilled in days of yore,
and there the kings had once had many farms, cornlands, vine-
yards, and woods. This land they called the Shire [struck out:
(as distinct from the Old Home at Bree)], which in their
language meant an ordered district of government and business
- the business of growing food and eating it and living in
comparative peace and content. This name Shire served to dis-
tinguish it from the wilder lands eastward, which became more
and more desolate, all the way back to the dreadful Mountains
over which (according to their own tales) their people had long
ago wandered westward; also from the smaller country, the
Oldhome at Bree, where they first settled - but not by them-
selves: for Bree they shared with the Bree-men. Now these folk
(of whom the brothers Marco and Cavallo were in their day
the largest and boldest) were of a kind concerning which the
records of ancient days have little to say - except of course their
own records and legends. They called themselves Hobbits. Most
other peoples called them Halflings (or words of similar mean-
ing in various languages), when they knew of them or heard
rumour of them. For they existed now only in the Shire, Bree,
and [? lonely] here and there were a few wild Hobbits in Eriador.
And it is said that there were still a few 'wild hobbits' in the
eaves of Mirkwood west and east of the Forest. Hobbit appears
to be a 'corruption' or shortening of older holbytla 'hole
dweller'.(10) This was the name by which they were known (to
legend) in Rohan, whose people still spoke a tongue very like
the most ancient form of the Hobbit language. Both peoples
originally came from the lands of the upper Anduin.(11)
The date '1347?' of the Battle of Greenfields (12) suggests that it was here
that that event re-entered from The Hobbit (see IX.119); later my
father changed it here to 1147, while in The Scouring of the Shire it
was first given as 1137 (IX.101 and note 31).
Returning briefly to the manuscript P 5, I have not yet mentioned
that in this text, as originally written, the old passage in P 1 concern-
ing the Hobbits of the Marish ('the hobbit-breed was not quite
pure', 'no pure-bred hobbit had a beard', VI.312), still preserved in the
revision of P 2, was now altered:
The Hobbits of that quarter, the Eastfarthing, were rather
large and heavy-legged; and they wore dwarf-boots in muddy
weather. But they were Stoors in the most of their blood, as was
shown by the down that some grew on their chins. However, the
matter of these breeds and the Shire-lore about them we must
leave aside for the moment.
In the published Prologue this passage (apart of course from the last
sentence) comes after the account of the 'three breeds' (FR p. 12), in
which the Stoors had been introduced. But a further new passage was
added on a separate page of the P 5 manuscript, corresponding to that
in FR pp. 11 - 13 from 'Of their original home the Hobbits in Bilbo's
time preserved no knowledge' to '... such as the Tooks and the
Masters of Buckland'; and the account here of the Harfoots, Stoors
and Fallohides was derived with little change from the earliest version
of Appendix F, in which (p. 55, note 10) the idea of the 'three breeds'
is seen in its actual emergence. The text in P 5 is all but identical to
that in the final form, lacking only the statement that many of the
Stoors 'long dwelt between Tharbad and the borders of Dunland
before they moved north again', and still placing the Stoors before the
Harfoots (see ibid.).
The word smial(s) first occurs, in the texts of the Prologue, in P 5.
Its first occurrence in the texts of The Lord of the Rings is in The
Scouring of the Shire: see IX.87 and note 16 (where I omitted to
mention that in Pippin's reference to 'the Great Place of the Tooks
away back in the Smials at Tuckborough' in the chapter Treebeard
(TT p. 64) the words 'the Smials at' were a late addition to the type-
script of the chapter).
A further manuscript, P 6, brought the Prologue very close to the
form that it had in the First Edition of The Lord of the Rings.(13) This
was a clear and fluently written text bearing the title Prologue:
Concerning Hobbits; and here entered the last 'missing passage', FR
pp. 13-14, from 'In the westlands of Eriador ...' to 'They were, in fact,
sheltered, but they had ceased to remember it.'
The text of P 6 differed still from the published form in a number of
ways, mostly very minor (see note 14). The text was not yet divided
into four numbered sections, though the final ordering and succession
of the parts was now reached; and the concluding section, on the find-
ing of the Ring, was still the original story (see p. 7): this was derived,
with some rewriting, from the text of P 2, but with a notable addition.
After the reference to Gollum's saying that he had got the Ring as a
birthday present long ago there follows:
Bilbo might indeed have wondered how that could be, and still
more why Gollum should be willing to give such a treasure
away, if his case had been less desperate, and if in fact Gollum
had ever given him the present. He did not, for when he
returned to his island to fetch it the Ring was not to be found.
This part then concludes much as in P 2, with the addition of a passage
about Bilbo's secrecy concerning the Ring, and his disposal of Sting
and the coat of mail; ending 'And the years passed, while he wrote in
his leisurely fashion the story of his journey.'
In P 6 the 'Shirking' had disappeared, and in its place stood at first
the title 'Elder', though this was replaced by 'Thane' before the manu-
script was completed, and the spelling 'Thain' was substituted later
(see p. 6). In this text the Battle of Greenfields, with the date S.R.
1147, appears.(14)
The manuscript ends with a passage, subsequently struck out, that
was preserved with little material change as the conclusion of the Fore-
word to the First Edition of 1954. This begins with the remarks about
the map of the Shire (now with the addition 'besides other maps of
wider and more distant countries') and the 'abridged family-trees' that
go back to P 1 (VI.313-14), but then continues:
There is also an index of names [struck out: with explanations]
and strange words; and a table of days and dates. For those who
are curious and like such lore some account is given in an
appendix of the languages, the alphabets, and the calendars that
were used in the Westlands in the Third Age of Middle-earth.
But such lore is not necessary, and those who do not need it, or
desire it, may neglect it, and even the names they may pro-
nounce as they will. Some care has been given to the translation
of their spelling from the original alphabets, and some notes
on the sounds that are intended are offered. But not all are
interested in such matters, and many who are not may still find
the account of these great and valiant deeds worth the reading.
It was in that hope that this long labour was undertaken; for it
has required several years to translate, select, and arrange the
matter of the Red Book of Westmarch in the form in which it is
now presented to Men of a later Age, one no less darkling and
ominous than were the great years 1418 and 1419 of the Shire
long ago.(15)
This text was followed by a typescript copy (P 7). To this my father
made the corrections and additions that brought the Prologue to its
final form (many being made to its exemplar P 6 as well); and it was
on this typescript that he rejected the original tale of Bilbo's encounter
with Gollum and introduced the 'true tale' (FR pp. 20-2). The story
is told here on appended pages in exactly its form in the published
Prologue, ending with Gollum's cry 'Thief, thief! Baggins! We hates it
for ever!'
From this point, however, there are two texts. In one of these the
original story, now become Bilbo's untrue version, is not mentioned at
all, and the text moves at once from Gollum's cry of hatred to 'Of
Bilbo's later adventures little more need be said here'. But my father
was in doubt, whether or not to say anything in the Prologue about
Bilbo's doctored accounts of the events; for at the point where the
actual story ends ('We hates it for ever!') he subsequently added in this
text a direction to a 'Note' on a separate sheet, which was apparently
written quite independently. In this 'Note' (which was the origin of the
passage concerning the two versions in FR p. 22) the satisfying expla-
nation of the difference in the story as told in the two editions of The
Hobbit is probably seen at its emergence. He began: 'This is not the
story as Bilbo first told it to his companions and to Gandalf, or indeed
as he first set it down in his book' (my italics), but struck out the words
following 'Gandalf'; he then went on to say that though Bilbo set
down the false story in his memoirs, and 'so it probably appeared in
the original Red Book', nonetheless 'many copies contain the true
account (alone or as an alternative), derived, no doubt, from notes
made by Frodo or Samwise, both of whom knew the truth.'
On this page he noted (later): 'Alternative, if the only reference to
this is made in Chapter II (second fair copy).' This is a reference to the
final typescript of the chapter The Shadow of the Past, that went to
the printers. The explanation of this apparently very obscure comment
is as follows. On the text preceding the one to which he referred, that
is to say the penultimate typescript, he had introduced a long rider (16)
after Gandalf's words (FR p. 66) 'I put the fear of fire on him, and
wrung the true story out of him, bit by bit, with much snivelling and
snarling.' In this rider Gandalf continued:
'... I already suspected much of it. Indeed I already suspected
something that I am sure has never occurred to you: Bilbo's
story was not true.'
'What do you mean?' cried Frodo. 'I can't believe it.'
'Well, this is Gollum's account. Bilbo's reward for winning
was merely to be shown a way out of the tunnels. There was no
question of a present, least of all of giving away his "precious".
Gollum confesses that he went back to his island to get it,
simply so as to kill Bilbo in safety, for he was hungry and angry.
But as Bilbo had already picked up the ring, he escaped, and the
last Gollum knew of him was when he crept up behind and
jumped over him in the dark. That is much more like Gollum!'
'But it is quite unlike Bilbo, not to tell the true tale,' said
Frodo. 'And what was the point of it?'
'Unlike Bilbo, yes. But unlike Bilbo with the ring? No, I am
afraid not. You see, half-unknown to himself he was trying to
strengthen his claim to be its rightful owner: it was a present,
a prize he had won. Much like Gollum and his "birthday-
present". The two were more alike than you will admit. And
both their tales were improbable and hobbitlike. My dear
Frodo, Elven-rings are never given away as presents, or prizes:
never. You are a hobbit yourself or you would have doubted the
tale, as I did at once.
'But as I have told you, I found it impossible to question Bilbo
on the point without making him very angry. So I let it be, for
our friendship's sake. His touchiness was proof enough for me.
I guessed then that the ring had an unwholesome power over its
keeper that set to work quickly. Yes, even on Bilbo the desire for
ownership had gripped at once, and went on growing. But for-
tunately it stayed at that, and he took little other harm. For he
got the ring blamelessly. He did not steal it; he found it, and it
was quite impossible to give it back: Gollum would have killed
him at once. He paid for it, you might say, with mercy, and gave
Gollum his life at great risk. And so in the end he got rid of the
thing, just in time.
'But as for Gollum: he will never again be free of the desire
for it, I fear. When I last saw him, he was still filled with it, whin-
ing that he was tricked and ill-used. [But when he had at last
told me his history ...
In the following (final) typescript of the chapter the rider is not
present; but my father added a note at this point 'Take in rider' - and
then struck it out. It was clearly at this time that he wrote the note
referred to above, 'Alternative, if the only reference to this is made
in Chapter II': he meant, if no more was to be said of the matter in
Chapter H than Gandalf's words 'I put the fear of fire on him, and
wrung the true story out of him, bit by bit, with much snivelling
and snarling' - i.e., without the rider just given. If that rider was to be
rejected, then a passage on the subject must be given in the Prologue.
This was ultimately his decision; and the second of the two texts
appended to P 6 is exactly as it stands in the published Prologue,
p. 22: 'Now it is a curious fact that this is not the story as Bilbo first
told it to his companions ...'(17)
The Note on the Shire Records entered in the Second Edition. In one
of his copies of the First Edition my father noted: 'Here should be
inserted Note on the Shire Records'; but he wrote against this later: 'I
have decided against this. It belongs to Preface to The Silmarillion.'
With this compare my remarks in the Foreword to The Book of Lost
Tales Part One, pp. S-6.
I have given this rather long account of the history of the Prologue,
because it is one of the best-known of my father's writings, the pri-
mary source for knowledge of the Hobbits, on which he expended
much thought and care; and also because it seems of special interest to
see how it evolved. in relation to the narrative of The Lord of the
Rings. I will here briefly recapitulate some elements that seem to me to
emerge from this history.
While it is not strictly demonstrable, I think it extremely likely
that my father returned after many years to the original form of the
Prologue (or Foreword as he still called it) about the time, or soon
after it, when he was writing the long first draft that went from Many
Partings through Homeward Bound and The Scouring of the Shire
to The Grey Havens, that is to say in the summer of 1948 (IX.12 - 13,
108). I have pointed to a number of indications that this was so.
On the one hand, we see the appearance, at successive stages in the
writing of the Prologue, of the Shirriffs in the revision of the old P 2
text (p. 6); of the word smial in P 5 (p. 11); of the Battle of Greenfields
in P 6 (see pp. 9-11); of the title of Thane (Thain) in the same text
(p. 11). On the other hand, all these first appear in The Scouring of the
Shire - and in two cases, the Battle of Greenfields and the title of
Thain, they were absent from the original draft of that chapter. I
believe that my father's return to the Shire at the end of The Lord of
the Rings provided the impulse for his renewed work on the Prologue
and its subsequent extension by stages. Moreover it is seen from
the history of this text how much of the account of Hobbits and their
origins actually emerged after the narrative of The Lord of the Rings
was completed - most notably, perhaps, the idea of their division into
Harfoots, Stoors, and Fallohides, which entered from the earliest ver-
sion of the appendix on languages (p. 10). Some of these new elements
were then introduced into the existing narrative, such as smials into
the chapter Treebeard (p. 11), or Stoors into the chapter The Shadow
of the Past (p. 66, $20).
Successive stages in the development of the Prologue were accom-
panied, of course, by development in the Appendices, as is seen from
references to the languages and to dates, and from such points as
the naming of Argeleb II as the king who granted possession of the
Shire to the Hobbits (p. 9, and see p. 209). But the-latest stage of the
Prologue discussed here, the manuscript P 6 and its typescript copy
P 7, which in all other respects closely approached the final form, still
had the old story of the finding of the Ring, and can therefore be
dated, at the latest, to before July 1950.
NOTES.
1. The Hobbit was now said to have been 'based on [Bilbo's] own
much longer memoirs'; 'Earliest Days' was changed to 'Elder
Days', and 'Folco Took' (by way of 'Faramond Took' and
'Peregrin Boffin', see VII.31-2) to 'Peregrin Took'; 'the one real-
ly populous town of their Shire, Michel-Delving' became 'the
only town of their Shire, the county-town, Michel-Delving'; and
the boots of the hobbits of the Marish became 'dwarf-boots'. The
Hobbits' antipathy to vessels and water, and to swimming in it,
was the only actual addition.
In a letter to Sir Stanley Unwin of 21 September 1947 (Letters
no.111) my father said that he was sending,'the preliminary
chapter or Foreword to the whole: "Concerning Hobbits", which
acts as a link to the earlier book and at the same time answers
questions that have been asked.' From the date, this must have
been a copy of the original version, as corrected.
2. The date April 30th was corrected to April 28th on the text P 3
(p- 7).
3. Northworthy: the Old English word, wordig were common
elements in place-names, with the same general meaning as tun
(-ton), an enclosed dwelling-place.
4. The fiction of 'translation' from the 'true' Hobbit language (the
Common Speech) was inimical to puns in any case, good though
this one was..
5. The extension to P 2 on the ordering of the Shire was a typescript,
but that on pipe-weed was a manuscript written on slips. My
father inserted them into P 2 as a unit, but they clearly originat-
ed separately: see note 6.
6. In his letter to me of 6 May 1944 (cited in VIII.45, note 36) my
father said that 'if [Faramir] goes on much more a lot of him
will have to be removed to the appendices - where already some
fascinating material on the hobbit Tobacco industry and the
Languages of the West have gone.' I remarked (VIII.162) that
Faramir's exposition of linguistic history 'survived into sub-
sequent typescripts, and was only removed at a later time; thus
the excluded material on "the Languages of the West" was not
the account given by Faramir.' It is indeed difficult to say what it
was. On the other hand, the 'pipe-weed' passage was removed
from the chapter The Road to Isengard before the first completed
manuscript was written (VIII.39). It is in fact quite possible that
the account of 'pipe-weed' in the long addition to P 2 does go
back so early, seeing that it was certainly written quite indepen-
dently of the first part of the addition, on the ordering of the Shire
(see note 5).
7. Similarly the statement in P 1 (VI.311) that Bandobras Took, the
Bullroarer, was the son of Isengrim the First was retained in P 2
as revised: in the published genealogical tree he became the
grandson of Isengrim II. - A curious exception to my statement
(p. 4) that P 2 as typed was a precise copy of the original version
is found in the name Bandobras, which in P 2 became Barnabas;
but this was probably a mere slip. It was corrected back to
Bandobras in the revision.
8. In P 5 the name Lithe entered as my father wrote, changing 'at
Midsummer' to 'at the Lithe (that is Midsummer)'.
9. The name Luyde for the month of March is found once else-
where, a comparative calendar of Hobbit and modern dates
written on the back of a page of the earliest text of the Appendix
on Calendars (see p. 136, note 3}. Above Luyde here my father
wrote a name beginning Re which is certainly not as it stands
Rethe, the later Hobbit name of March, but must be taken as an
ill-written form of that name.
10. On holbytla translated 'hole dweller' see p. 49, $48 and com-
mentary (p. 69).
11. This is to be associated with the early version of Appendix F,
$$22-3 (p. 38): '... before their crossing of the Mountains the
Hobbits spoke the same language as Men in the higher vales of
the Anduin ... Now that language was nearly the same as the
language of the ancestors of the Rohirrim'.
12. The second figure of the date 1347 is slightly uncertain, but it
looks much more like a '3' than a '1'.
13. The significant changes made in the Second Edition (1966) were
few. On FR p. 14, where the later text has 'There for a thousand
years they were little troubled by wars ...' to '... the Hobbits had
again become accustomed to plenty', the First Edition had simply
'And thenceforward for a thousand years they lived in almost
unbroken peace' (thus without the mention of the Dark Plague,
the Long Winter, and the Days of Dearth}. At the beginning of the
next paragraph the reading of the Second Edition, 'Forty leagues
it stretched from the Far Downs to the Brandywine Bridge,
and fifty from the northern moors to the marshes in the south',
was substituted for 'Fifty leagues it stretched from the West-
march under the Tower Hills to the Brandywine Bridge, and
nearly fifty from the northern moors ...'. My father noted that
the word 'nearly' was (wrongly) omitted in the text of the Second
Edition, 'so this must be accepted'.
On FR p. 16, in 'Three Elf-towers of immemorial age were still
to be seen on the Tower Hills', the words 'on the Tower Hills'
were an addition, and in a following sentence 'upon a green
mound' was changed from 'upon a green hill'. At the end of this
first section of the Prologue (FR p. 17) the sentence 'Hobbits
delighted in such things ...' was in the First Edition put in the
present tense throughout.
Lastly, in the first paragraph of the third section, FR p. 18, the
sentence 'Outside the Farthings were the East and West Marches:
the Buckland; and the Westmarch added to the Shire in S.R.
1462' was an addition.
14. A few further differences in P 6 from the published text may be
recorded. In the paragraph concerning the script and language
of the Hobbits (FR p. 13) P 6 had: 'And if ever Hobbits had a
language of their own (which is debated) then in those days they
forgot it and spoke ever after the Common Speech, the Westron
as it was named', this being changed to the reading of FR, 'And
in those days also they forgot whatever languages they had used
before, and spoke ever after the Common Speech ...' And at the
end of the paragraph the sentence 'Yet they kept a few words of
their own, as well as their own names of months and days, and a
great store of personal names out of the past' is lacking. Cf. the
original version of Appendix F, pp. 37-8, $$21 - 3.
The founders of the Shire were still Marco and Cavallo (pp. 6,
9; later changed to Marcho and Blanco); and the second of the
conditions imposed on the Hobbits of the Shire (cf. the text given
on p. 9) was 'to foster the land' (changed later to 'speed the king's
messengers'). The first grower of pipe-weed in the Shire was still
Tobias Hornblower, and still in the time of Isengrim the First
(p. 6); the date was apparently first written 1050 as before, but
changed to 1020. Later Isengrim the Second and the date 1070
were substituted, but Tobias remained. The footnote to this
passage (p. 6) was retained, but 'about 400 years' was later
altered to 'nearly 350'. The third of the Longbottom brands now
became 'Hornpipe Cake', but was changed back to 'Hornpipe
Twist'.
15. In the Foreword as published this concluding paragraph began:
Much information, necessary and unnecessary, will be found
in the Prologue. To complete it some maps are given, including
one of the Shire that has been approved as reasonably correct
by those Hobbits that still concern themselves with ancient
history. At the end of the third volume will be found also some
abridged family-trees ...
When P 6 was written, of course, the idea that The Lord of the
Rings should be issued as a work in three volumes was not
remotely envisaged. The published Foreword retained the refer-
ence to 'an index of names and strange words with some expla-
nations', although in the event it was not provided.
16. I did not carry my account of the history of The Shadow of the
Past so far as this: see VII.28-9.
17. In this connection it is interesting to see what my father said in
his letter to Sir Stanley Unwin of 10 September 1950 (Letters
no.129):
I have now on my hands two printed versions of a crucial
incident. Either the first must be regarded as washed out, a
mere miswriting that ought never to have seen the light; or the
story as a whole must take into account the existence of two
versions and use it. The former was my original simpleminded
intention, though it is a bit awkward (since the Hobbit is fairly
widely known in its older form) if the literary pretence of
historicity and dependence on record is to be maintained. The
second can be done convincingly (I think), but not briefly ex-
plained in a note.
The last words refer to the note required for the new edition of
The Hobbit explaining the difference in the narrative in Riddles
in the Dark. Four days later he wrote again (Letters no.130):
I have decided to accept the existence of both versions of
Chapter Five, so far as the sequel goes - though I have no time
at the moment to rewrite that at the required points.
II.
THE APPENDIX ON LANGUAGES.
Beside the Foreword: Concerning Hobbits, whose development, clear
and coherent, into the Prologue has been described in the last chapter,
there is another text of a prefatory or introductory nature; and it is
not easy to see how my father designed it to relate to the Foreword:
Concerning Hobbits. Indeed, except in one point, they have nothing
in common; for this further text (which has no title) is scarcely con-
cerned with Hobbits at all. For a reason that will soon be apparent I
give it here in full.
It was typed on small scrap paper, and very obviously set down
by my father very rapidly ab initio without any previous drafting,
following his thoughts as they came: sentences were abandoned before
complete and replaced by new phrasing, and so on. He corrected it
here and there in pencil, either then or later, these corrections being
very largely minor improvements or necessary 'editorial' clarifications
of the very rough text; in most cases I have incorporated these (not all
are legible). I have added paragraph numbers for subsequent refer-
ence. Notes to this section will be found on page 26.
$1. This tale is drawn from the memoirs of Bilbo and Frodo
Baggins, preserved for the most part in the Great Red Book of
Samwise. It has been written during many years for those who
were interested in the account of the great Adventure of Bilbo,
and especially for my friends, the Inklings (in whose veins, I
suspect, a good deal of hobbit blood still runs), and for my sons
and daughter.
$2. But since my children and others of their age, who first
heard of the finding of the Ring, have grown older with the
years, this tale speaks more clearly of those darker things which
lurked only on the borders of the other tale, but which have
troubled the world in all its history.
$3. To the Inklings I dedicate this book, since they have
already endured it with patience - my only reason for suppos-
ing that they have a hobbit-strain in their venerable ancestry:
otherwise it would be hard to account for their interest in
the history and geography of those long-past days, between
the end of the Dominion of the Elves and the beginning of the
Dominion of Men, when for a brief time the Hobbits played a
supreme part in the movements of the world.
$4. For the Inklings I add this note, since they are men of
lore, and curious in such matters. It is said that Hobbits spoke
a language, or languages, very similar to ours. But that must not
be misunderstood. Their language was like ours in manner and
spirit; but if the face of the world has changed greatly since
those days, so also has every detail of speech, and even the
letters and scripts then used have long been forgotten, and new
ones invented.(1)
$5. No doubt for the historians and philologists it would
have been desirable to preserve the original tongues; and
certainly something of the idiom and the humour of the hobbits
is lost in translation, even into a language as similar in mood as
is our own. But the study of the languages of those days requires
time and labour, which no one but-myself would, I think, be
prepared to give to it. So I have except for a few phrases and
inscriptions transferred the whole linguistic setting into the
tongues of our own time.
$6. The Common Speech of the West in those days I have
represented by English. This noble tongue had spread in the
course of time from the kingdoms of Fornost and Gondor, and
the hobbits preserved no memory of any other speech; but they
used it in their own manner, in their daily affairs very much as
we use English; though they had always at command a richer
and more formal language when occasion required, or when
they had dealings with other people. This more formal and
archaic style was still the normal use in the realm of Gondor (as
they discovered) and among the great in the world outside the
Shire.
$7. But there were other languages in the lands. There were
the tongues of the Elves. Three are here met with. The most
ancient of all, the High-Elven, which they used in secret as their
own common speech and as the language of lore and song. The
Noldorin, which may be called Gnomish, the language of the
Exiles from Elvenhome in the Far West, to which tongue belong
most of the names in this history that have been preserved with-
out translation. And the language of the woodland Elves, the
Elves of Middle-earth. All these tongues were related, but those
spoken in Middle-earth, whether by Exiles or by Elves that had
remained here from the beginning, were much changed.(2) Only
in Gondor was the Elvish speech known commonly to Men.
$8. There were also the languages of Men, when they did
not speak the Common Tongue. Now those languages of Men
that are here met with were related to the Common Speech; for
the Men of the North and West were akin in the beginning to
the Men of Westernesse that came back over the Sea; and the
Common Speech was indeed made by the blending of the speech
of Men of Middle-earth with the tongues of the kings from over
the Sea.(3) But in the North old forms survived. The speech of the
Men of Dale, therefore, to show its relationship has been cast in
a Northern form related distantly to the English which has been
taken to represent the Common Speech. While the speech of the
Men of Rohan, who came out of the North, and still among
themselves used their ancestral language (though all their
greater folk spoke also the Common Speech after the manner of
their allies in Gondor), I have represented by ancient English,
such as it was a thousand years ago, or as far back from us
about as was the day of Eorl the Young from Theoden of
Rohan.(4)
$9. The orcs and goblins had languages of their own, as
hideous as all things that they made or used; and since some
remnant of good will, and true thought and perception, is
required to keep even a base language alive and useful even for
base purposes, their tongues were endlessly diversified in form,
as they were deadly monotonous in purport, fluent only in the
expression of abuse, of hatred and fear. For which reason they
and their kind used (and still use) the languages of nobler
creatures in such intercourse as they must have between tribe
and tribe.(5)
$10. The dwarves are a different case. They are a hard
thrawn folk for the most part, secretive, acquisitive, laborious,
retentive of the memory of injuries (and of benefits), lovers of
stone, of metals, of gems, of things that grow and take shape
under the hands of craft rather than of things that live by their
own life. But they are not and were not ever among the workers
of wilful evil in the world nor servants of the Enemy, whatever
the tales of Men may later have said of them; for Men have
lusted after the works of their hands, and there has been enmity
between the races. But it is according to the nature of the
Dwarves that travelling, and labouring, and trading about the
world they should use ever openly the languages of the Men
among whom they dwell; and yet in secret (a secret which unlike
the Elves they are unwilling to unlock even to those whom they
know are friends and desire learning not power) they use a
strange slow-changing tongue.(6) Little is known about it. So it is
that here such Dwarves as appear have names of the same
Northern kind as the Men of Dale that dwelt round about, and
speak the Common Speech, now in this manner now in that;
and only in a few names do we get any glimpse of their hidden
tongue.
$11. And as for the scripts, something must be said of them,
since in this history there are both inscriptions and old books,
such as the torn remnants of the Book of Mazarbul,(7) that must
be read. Enough of them will appear in this book,to allow,
maybe, the skilled in such matters to decipher both runes and
running hands. But others may wish for a clearer key. For them
the Elvish Script (in its more formal shape, as it was used in
Gondor for the Common Speech) is set out in full; though its
various modifications used in writing other tongues, especially
the High-Elven or the Noldorin, must here be passed over.
Another script plays a part both in the previous account and the
present one: the Runes. These also, as most other things of the
kind, were also an Elvish invention. But whereas the flowing
scripts (of two kinds, the alphabet of Rumil and the alphabet of
Feanor, only the later of which concerns this tale) were devel-
oped in Elvenhome far from Middle-earth, the Runes, or cirth,
were devised by the Elves of the woods; and from that origin
derive their peculiar character, similar to the Runes of the North
in our days, though their detail is different and it is very doubt-
ful if there is any lineal connexion between the two alphabets.
The Elvish cirth are in any case more elaborate and numerous
and systematic. The Dwarves devised no letters and though they
used such writing as they found current for necessary purposes,
they wrote few books, except brief chronicles (which they kept
secret). In the North in those regions from which the Dwarves
of this tale came they used the cirth, or Runes. Following the
general lines of translation, to which these records have been
submitted, as the names of the North have been given the forms
of Northern tongues in our own time, so the Runes were repre-
sented by the runes of ancient England. But since the scripts and
runes of that account interested many of its readers, older and
younger, and many enquiries concerning them have been made,
in this book it has been thought better to give any runic inscrip-
tions or writings that occur in their truer form, and to add at the
end a table of the cirth, with their names, according to the usage
of Dale, among both Dwarves and Men. A list of the names that
occur is also given, and where they are taken from the ancient
records the language to which they belong is stated and their
meaning, or the meaning of their component parts, is added.
$12. The word Gnomish is used above; and it would be an
apt name, since whatever Paracelsus may have thought (if
indeed he invented the word), to the learned it suggests know-
ledge. And their own true name in High-Elven is Noldor, Those
that Know; for of the Three Kindreds of the Elves in the begin-
ning, ever the Noldor were distinguished both by their know-
ledge of things that are and were in this world, and by the desire
to know yet more. Yet they were not in fact in any way like to
the gnomes of our learned theory, and still less to the gnomes of
popular fancy in which they have been confused with dwarves
and goblins, and other small creatures of the earth. They
belonged to a race high and beautiful, the Elder Children of the
World, who now are gone. Tall they were, fairskinned and grey-
eyed, though their locks were dark, and their voices knew more
melodies than any mortal speech that now is heard. Valiant they
were and their history was lamentable, and though a little of it
was woven with the fates of the Fathers of Men in the Elder
Days, their fate is not our fate, and their lives and the lives of
Men cross seldom.(8)
$13. It will be noted also that in this book, as before,
Dwarves are spoken of, although dictionaries tell us that the
plural of dwarf is dwarfs. It should, of course, be dwarrows;
meaning that, if each, singular and plural, had gone its own
natural way down the years, unaffected by forgetfulness, as
Man and Men have, then dwarf and dwarrows we should have
said as surely as we say goose and geese. But we do not talk
about dwarf as often as we talk of man, or even goose, and
memories are not good enough among men to keep hold of a
special plural for a race now relegated (such is their fate and the
fall of their great pride) to folktales, where at least some shadow
of the truth is preserved, or at last to nonsense tales where they
have become mere figures of fun who do not wash their hands.
But here something of their old character and power (if already
diminished) is still glimpsed; these are the Nauglir (9) of old, in
whose hearts still smouldered the ancient fires and the embers
of their grudge against the Elves; and to mark this dwarves is
used, in defiance of correctness and the dictionaries - although
actually it is derived from no more learned source than child-
hood habit. I always had a love of the plurals that did not go
according to the simplest rule: loaves, and elves, and wolves,
and leaves; and wreaths and houses (which I should have liked
better spelt wreathes and houzes); and I persist in hooves and
rooves according to ancient authority. I said therefore dwarves
however I might see it spelt, feeling that the good folk were a
little dignified so; for I never believed the sillier things about
them that were presented to my notice. I wish I had known of
dwarrows in those days. I should have liked it better still. I have
enshrined it now at any rate in my translation of the name of
Moria in the Common Speech, which meant The Dwarf-
delving, and that I have rendered by The Dwarrow-delf. But
Moria itself is an Elvish name of Gnomish kind, and given with-
out love, for the true Gnomes, though they might here and there
in the bitter wars against the Enemy and his orc-servants make
great fortresses beneath the Earth, were not dwellers in caves or
tunnels of choice, but lovers of the green earth and of the lights
of heaven; and Moria in their tongue means the Black Chasm.
But the Dwarves themselves, and this name at any rate was
never secret, called it simply Khazad-dum, the Mansion of the
Khazad, for such is their own name for their own race, and has
been so, since their birth in the deeps of time.(10)
The opening remarks of this text certainly suggest that the narrative of
The Lord of the Rings had been completed; and this in turn suggests
that it was not far removed in time from the renewed work on the
Foreword: Concerning Hobbits (i.e. the Prologue). Though it is not
much mom than a guess, I incline to think that when my father began
it he intended it as a personal and dedicatory 'preface', entirely distinct
in nature from the account of the Hobbits, which was a prologue
expressly relating to the narrative; but that involuntarily he was soon
swept into writing about those matters of languages and scripts that
he felt needed some introduction and explanation at least as much as
did the Hobbits. The result was, clearly, a combination wholly unsuit-
able to his purpose, and he put it aside. I would also guess that it was
the writing of this text that gave rise to the idea of a special Appendix
on languages and scripts (ultimately divided into two); and this is why
I place it at the beginning of this account of the evolution of what
came to be 'Appendix F', The Languages and Peoples of the Third
Age. Since I shall number the texts of this Appendix from 'F 1', it is
convenient to call this anomalous 'Foreword' F*.
My father did not lose sight of this text, however, and later used
elements from it, both in Appendix F (11) and in the Foreword that
accompanied the First Edition of The Fellowship of the Ring,
published in 1954. Since copies of the First Edition may not be easy to
come by, I print the greater part of it again here (for the concluding
section see p. 12 with note 15).
This tale, which has grown to be almost a history of the great War
of the Ring, is drawn for the most part from the memoirs of the
renowned Hobbits, Bilbo and Frodo, as they are preserved in the
Red Book of Westmarch. This chief monument of Hobbit-lore is so
called because it was compiled, repeatedly copied, and enlarged and
handed down in the family of the Fairbairns of Westmarch,
descended from that Master Samwise of whom this tale has much
to say.
I have supplemented the account of the Red Book, in places, with
information derived from the surviving records of Gondor, notably
the Book of the Kings; but in general, though I have omitted much,
I have in this tale adhered more closely to the actual words and
narrative of my original than in the previous selection from the Red
Book, The Hobbit. That was drawn from the early chapters, com-
posed originally by Bilbo himself. If 'composed' is a just word. Bilbo
was not assiduous, nor an orderly narrator, and his account is
involved and discursive, and sometimes confused: faults that still
appear in the Red Book, since the copiers were pious and careful,
and altered very little.
The tale has been put into its present form in response to the
many requests that I have received for further information about the
history of the Third Age, and about Hobbits in particular. But since
my children and others of their age, who first heard of the finding of
the Ring, have grown older with the years, this book speaks more
plainly of those darker things which lurked only on the borders of
the earlier tale, but which have troubled Middle-earth in all its
history. It is, in fact, not a book written for children at all; though
many children will, of course, be interested in it, or parts of it, as
they still are in the histories and legends of other times (especially in
those not specially written for them).
I dedicate the book to all admirers of Bilbo, but especially to
my sons and my daughter, and to my friends the Inklings. To the
Inklings, because they have already listened to it with a patience,
and indeed with an interest, that almost leads me to suspect that
they have hobbit-blood in their venerable ancestry. To my sons and
my daughter for the same reason, and also because they have all
helped me in the labours of composition. If 'composition' is a just
word, and these pages do not deserve all that I have said about
Bilbo's work.
For if the labour has been long (more than fourteen years), it has
been neither orderly nor continuous. But I have not had Bilbo's
leisure. Indeed much of that time has contained for me no leisure at
all, and more than once for a whole year the dust has gathered on
my unfinished pages. I only say this to explain to those who have
waited for this book why they have had to wait so long. I have no
reason to complain. I am surprised and delighted to find from
numerous letters that so many people, both in England and across
the Water, share my interest in this almost forgotten history; but it
is not yet universally recognized as an important branch of study. It
has indeed no obvious practical use, and those who go in for it can
hardly expect to be assisted.
Much information, necessary and unnecessary, will be found in
the Prologue....
In the Second Edition of 1966 this Foreword was rejected in its en-
tirety. On one of his copies of the First Edition my father wrote beside
it: 'This Foreword I should wish very much in any case to cancel.
Confusing (as it does) real personal matters with the "machinery" of
the Tale is a serious mistake.'(12)
NOTES.
1. On this passage see note 11.
2. On my father's conception at this time of the use in Middle-earth
in the Third Age of Noldorin on the one hand, and of 'the
language of the woodland Elves* on the other, see p. 36, $18, and
commentary (pp. 65-6).
3. On this passage concerning the origin of the Common Speech see
p. 63, $9.
4. In Appendix A (RK pp. 349 - 50) the length of time between the
birth-dates of Eorl the Young and Theoden was 463 years.
5. My father was asserting, I think, that a language so base and nar-
row in thought and expression cannot remain a common tongue
of widespread use; for from its very inadequacy it cannot resist
change of form, and must become a mass of closed jargons,
incomprehensible even to others of the same kind.
6. This passage concerning the Dwarves, absent in the original
version of Appendix F, reappeared subsequently (p. 75), and was
retained, a good deal altered, in the final form of that Appendix
(RK p. 410).
7. My father deeply regretted that in the event his 'facsimiles' of the
torn and burned pages from the Book of Mazarbul were not
reproduced in The Lord of the Rings (see Letters nos.137,
139-40; but also pp. 298-9 in this book). They were finally
published in Pictures by J. R. R. Tolkien, 1979.
8. This is where the passage that concludes Appendix F in the pub-
lished form first arose. See further pp. 76-7.
9. Nauglir: curiously, my father here returned to the form found in
the Quenta of 1930, rather than using Naugrim, found in the
Quenta Silmarillion and later (see V.273, 277; XI.209). As
with those referred to in notes 6 and 8, this passage, absent in the
original version of Appendix F, was reinstated and appears with
little change in the published form (where the name is Naugrim).
10. Years later my father called this text a 'fragment' (see note 12). It
ends at the foot of a page, the last words typed being 'since their
birth', with 'in the deeps of time' added in pencil.
11. For passages from F' that reappeared in the course of the devel-
opment see notes 6, 8 and 9. In this connection there is a curious
and puzzling point arising from F'. In this text my father showed
his intention to say something in the published work about the
fiction of translation: that he had converted the 'true' languages
of Men (and Hobbits) in the Third Age of Middle-earth, wholly
alien to us, into an analogical structure composed of English in
modern and ancestral form, and Norse ($$5-6, 8). Introducing
this subject, he wrote ($4): 'It is said that Hobbits spoke a
language, or languages, very similar to ours. But that must not be
misunderstood. Their language was like ours in manner and
spirit; but if the face of the world has changed greatly since those
days, so also has every detail of speech ...'
One might wonder for a moment who said this of Hobbits, and
why my father should introduce it only to warn against taking
it literally; but it was of course he himself who said it, in the
original version P 1 of the Foreword: Concerning Hobbits
(VI.311, cited on p. 8): 'And yet plainly they must be relatives
of ours ... For one thing, they spoke a very similar language (or
languages), and liked or disliked much the same things as we used
to.' This was repeated years later in the revision of the second text
P 2 (see the comparative passages given on p. 8), but here the
qualifying statement, warning against misunderstanding, is not
present.
I cannot explain why my father should have made this cross-
reference to the Foreword: Concerning Hobbits, in order to point
out that it is misleading, nor why he should have retained it -
without this caveat - in his revision of P 2. What makes it still
odder is that, whereas in the first versions of Appendix F (in
which the 'theory and practice' of the translation of the true
languages was greatly elaborated) the remark is absent, it re-
appears in the third version (F 3, p. 73), and here in a form almost
identical to that in F': it is given as a citation, 'It has been said
that "the Hobbits spoke a language, or languages, very similar to
ours"', and this is followed by the same qualification: 'But this
must not be misunderstood. Their language was like ours in man-
ner and tone ...' As a final curiosity, by the time the third version
of Appendix F was written the remark had been removed from
the Prologue (see the citation from the text P 5 on p. 8), and
replaced by 'They spoke the languages of Men, and they liked
and disliked much the same things as we once did', though still,
as in the published Prologue, in the context of this being a sign of
the dose original relationship of Hobbits and Men.
12. Many years after the writing of F' my father noted on the type-
script: 'Fragment of an original Foreword afterwards divided into
Foreword and Prologue'. This was misleading, because F' played
no part in the Prologue, but did contribute to the Foreword of the
First Edition and to Appendix F.
*
The history of Appendix F, whose final title was The Languages and
Peoples of the Third Age (while the discussion of alphabets and
scripts, originally joined to that of the languages, became Appendix E,
Writing and Spelling), undoubtedly began with the abortive but not
unproductive text F>, but the first version of that Appendix is best
taken to be constituted by two closely related manuscripts, since these
were written as elaborate essays to stand independently of any 'Fore-
word'.
Long afterwards my father wrote (p. 299) that 'the actual Common
Speech was sketched in structure and phonetic elements, and a num-
ber of words invented'; and in this work he is seen developing the true
forms in the Westron tongue to underlie the translated (or substituted)
names, especially of Hobbits. A great deal of this material was sub-
sequently lost from the Appendix. This original version is also of great
interest in documenting his conception of the languages of Middle-
earth and their interrelations at the time when the narrative of The
Lord of the Rings had recently been completed; and also in showing
how substantially that conception was still to be developed before the
publication of The Lord of the Rings in 1954-5.
To date this version precisely seems scarcely possible, but at least it
can certainly be placed before the summer of 1950, and I think that it
may well be earlier than that.(1)
The earlier of the two texts, which I will refer to as F 1, is a fairly
rough and much emended, but entirely legible, manuscript entitled
Notes on the Languages at the end of the Third Age. A second manu-
script, F 2, succeeded it, as I think, very soon if not immediately, with
the title The Languages at the end o f the Third Age. Writing with great
care and clarity, my father followed F 1 pretty closely: very often
changing the expression or making additions, but for the most part in
minor ways, and seldom departing from the previous text even in the
succession of the sentences. The two texts are far too close to justify
giving them both, and I print therefore F 2, recording in the primarily
textual notes on pp. 54 ff. the relatively few cases where different read-
ings in F 1 seem of some significance or interest (but in the section on
Hobbit names, where there was much development in F 2, all differ-
ences between the two texts are detailed).
F2. was substantially corrected and added to (more especially in the
earlier part of the essay), and some pages were rewritten. These alter-
ations are not all of a kind, some being made with care and others
more roughly, and I have found it extremely difficult to determine, in
relative terms, when certain of them were made: the more especially
since the development after F 2 was not a steady progression, my
father evidently feeling that a different treatment of the subject was
required. Some corrections undoubtedly belong to a time when the
text as a whole had been supplanted. I have therefore included in the
text that follows all alterations made to the manuscript, and in most
cases I have shown them as such, though in order to reduce the clutter
I have in some cases introduced them silently, when they do no more
than improve the text (largely to increase its clarity) without in any
way altering its purport.
In general I treat F 2 as the representative text of the original
version, and only distinguish F 1 when necessary. The paragraph-
numbers are of course added editorially. A commentary follows the
notes on pp. 61 ff.
The Languages
at the end of the
Third Age.
$1. I have written this note on the languages concerned in
this book not only because this part of the lore of those days is
of special interest to myself, but because I find that many would
welcome some information of this kind. I have had many
enquiries concerning such matters from readers of the earlier
selections from the Red Book.*
$2. We have in these histories to deal with both Elvish and
Mannish (2) tongues. The long history of Elvish speech I will not
treat; but since three [> two] varieties of it are glimpsed in this
book a little may be said about it.
$3. According to Elvish historians the Elven-folk, by them-
selves called the Quendi, and Elven-speech were originally one.
The primary division was into Eldar and Avari. The Avari were
those Elves who remained content with Middle-earth [struck
out:] and refused the summons of the powers; but they and their
(* The Hobbit, drawn from the earlier chapters of the Red Book,
those mainly composed by Bilbo and dealing only with the discovery
of the Ring.)
many secret tongues do not concern this book. The Eldar were
those who set out and marched to the western shores of the Old
World. Most of them then passed over the Sea and came to that
land in the Ancient West which they called Valinor, a name that
means the Land of the Powers or Rulers of the World. But some
of the Eldar [added: of the kindred of the Teleri] remained
behind in the north-west of Middle-earth, and these were called
the Lembi or 'Lingerers'. It is with Eldarin tongues, Valinorean
or Lemberin [> Telerian] that these tales are concerned.
$4. In Valinor, from the language of that Elvish kindred
known as the Lindar, was made a High-Elven speech that, after
the Elves had devised letters, was used not only for lore and
formal writing, but also for high converse and for intercourse
among Elves of different kindreds. This, which is indeed an
'Elven-latin' as it were, unchanging in time and place, the Elves
themselves called Quenya: that is simply 'Elvish'.
$5. Now after long ages of peace it came to pass, as is
related in the Quenta Noldorion, that the Noldor, who were of
all the kindreds of the Eldar' the most skilled in crafts and lore,
departed as exiles from Valinor and returned to Middle-earth,
seeking the Great Jewels, the Silmarilli, which Feanor chief of
all their craftsmen had made. Their language, Noldorin, that at
first differed little from the Lindarin or Quenya, became on their
return to Middle-earth subject to the change which even things
devised by the Elves here suffer, and in the passing of time it
grew wholly unlike to the Quenya of Valinor, which tongue the
exiles nonetheless retained always in memory as a language of
lore and song and courtesy.*
$6 According to the Elves Men shared, though in a lesser
degree, many of the powers of the Elves, and they were capable
of devising languages of a sort for themselves, as indeed they
have done, it seems, in many remote lands. But in fact Men did
not in all regions go through the slow and painful process of
invention. In the North and West of the Old World they learned
language direct and fully made from Elves who befriended them
in their infancy and early wanderings; and the tongues of Men
(* On the other hand the Noldorin and Lemberin tongues, that had
long been sundered, being now spoken by peoples dwelling side by
side, drew closer together; and though they remained wholly distinct
they became similar in sound and style.)
which are, however remotely, of this origin the Quendi have at
all times found the more pleasant to their own ears. Yet soon
even these western tongues of Men became estranged from the
speech of Elves, being changed by process of time, or by Men's
own inventions and additions, or by other influences, notably
that of the Dwarves from whom long ago some Men learned
much, especially of delving, building, and smithying.
$7. Now the Men who first came westward out of the heart
of Middle-earth to lands near the shores of the Sea were called
by the Elves Atani,(3) [added: or in Noldorin the Edain,] the
Fathers of Men, and there was great friendship between the two
races. For when the Fathers of Men came over the mountains
they met for the first time the Eldar, or High-elves; and the Eldar
were at that time engaged in a ceaseless war with the Dark Lord
of that Age, one greater far than Sauron, who was but one of his
minions. In that war three houses of the Fathers of Men aided
the Elves, especially the Noldor, and lived among them and
fought beside them; and the people [> lords] of these houses
learned the Noldorin speech [struck out:] and forsook their own
tongue.(4)
$8. When at last that war was ended, most of the exiled
Noldor returned over the Sea to Valinor or to the land of
Eressea that lies / within sight of it [> near]. Then the people of
the Three Houses of Men were permitted as a reward to pass
also over the Sea, if they would, and to dwell in an isle set apart
for them. The name of that great isle was Numenor, which in
Quenya signifies Westernesse. Most of the Fathers of Men
departed and dwelt in Numenor and there became great and
powerful; and they were fair of face and tall, and masters of
craft and lore only less than the Eldar, and the span of their lives
was thrice that of men in Middle-earth, though they remained
mortal nonetheless, and were not permitted to set foot upon
the shores of the deathless land of Valinor. They were called
Kings of Men, the Numenoreans, or in Noldorin the Dunedein
[> Dunedain].(5)
$9. The language of the Dunedain was thus the Elvish
Noldorin, though their high lords and men of wisdom knew
also the Quenya, [> Thus in Numenor two languages were
used: the Numenorean (or Adunaic), and the Elvish Noldorin,
which all the lords of that people knew and spoke, for they had
many dealings with the Elves in the days ere their fall. But their
men of wisdom learned also the Quenya, and could read the
books of Elven lore;] and in that high tongue they gave names
to many places of fame or reverence, and to men of royalty and
great renown.* After the Downfall of Numenor (which was
contrived by Sauron) Elendil and the fugitives from the West
fled eastwards. But in the west-lands of Middle-earth, where
they established their exiled realms, they found a common
tongue in use along the coast-lands from the Mouths of Anduin
to the icy Bay of Forochel in the North. This tongue was in
Noldorin called Falathren or 'Shore-language', but by its users
was called Yandune [> Andunar > Adunar] (that is Westron) or
Soval Phare (that is Common Speech).(6)
$10. This Common Speech was [struck out:] in the begin-
ning / a Mannish language, and was indeed only a later form of
the native tongue of the Fathers of Men themselves before those
of the Three Houses passed over the Sea. It was thus closely akin
to other languages of Men that [> Other languages of Men,
derived also from the tongues of the Edain or closely akin to
them] were still spoken further inland, especially in the north-
ern regions of the west-lands or about the upper waters of the
Anduin. Its spread [> The spread of the Westron] had been at
first due largely to the Dunedain themselves; for in the Dark
Years they had often visited again the shores of Middle-earth,
and in the days of their great voyages before the Downfall they
had made many fortresses and havens for the help of their ships.
One of the greatest of these had been at Pelargir above the
Mouths of Anduin, and it is said that it was the language of that
region (which was afterwards called Gondor) that was the foun-
dation of the Common Speech. But Sauron, who could turn all
things devised by Elves or Men to his own evil purposes, had
also favoured the spread of this Common Speech, for it was
useful to him in the governing of his vast lordship in the Dark
Years.
$11. Beside the Common or Westron Speech, and other
kindred tongues of Men, there remained also in the days of
Elendil the languages of the Eldar. Strange though it may seem,
(* Of Quenya form, for instance, are the names Elendil, Anarion,
Isildur, and all the royal names of Gondor, including Elessar; also the
names of the kings of the Northern Line as far as the tenth, Earendil.
[Added: The names of other lords of the Dunedain such as Arathorn,
Aragorn, Boromir, Denethor are for the most part Noldorin; but
Imrahil and Adrahil are Numenorean (Adunaic) names.])
seeing that the Dunedain had dwelt for long years apart in
Numenor, the people of Elendil could still readily converse with
the Eldar that spoke Noldorin. The reasons for this are various.
First, the Numenoreans had never become wholly sundered
from the Noldor; for while those who had returned into the
West often came to Numenor in friendship, the Numenoreans,
as has been said, often visited Middle-earth and had at times
aided the Elves that remained there in their strife with Sauron.(7)
Again, the change and decay of things, though not wholly
removed, was yet much delayed in the land of the Dunedain in
the days of its blessedness; and the like may be said of the Eldar.(8)
[This paragraph was rewritten thus: Beside the Common or
Westron Speech, and other kindred tongues of Men, there
remained also in the days of Elendil the languages of the Eldar;
for many still dwelt in Eriador. With those that spoke Noldorin
the people of Elendil could still readily converse. For friendship
had long endured between the Numenoreans and the Noldor,
and the folk of Eressea had often visited Numenor, while the
Numenoreans had sailed often to Middle-earth and had at times
aided the Elves in their strife with Sauron.]
$12. Moreover, those were the days of the Three Rings.
Now, as is elsewhere told, these rings were hidden, and the
Eldar did not use them for the making of any new thing while
Sauron still reigned and wore the Ruling Ring; yet their chief
virtue was ever secretly at work, and that virtue was to defend
the Eldar who abode in Middle-earth [added: and all things per-
taining to them] from change and withering and weariness. So
it was that in all the long time from the forging of the Rings to
their ending, when the Third Age was over, the Eldar even upon
Middle-earth changed no more in a thousand years than do
Men in ten; and their language likewise.
$13. Now the people of Elendil were not many, for only a
few great ships had escaped the Downfall or survived the tumult
of the Seas. They found, it is true, many dwellers upon the west-
shores who came of their own blood, wholly or in part, being
descended from mariners and from wardens of forts and havens
that had been set there in days gone by; yet all told the
Dunedain were now only a small folk in the midst of strangers.
They used, therefore, the Westron speech in all their dealings
with other men, and in the governing of the realms of which
they had become the rulers; and this Common Speech became
now enlarged, and much enriched with words drawn from the
language of the Dunedain, which was, as has been said, a form
of the Elvish Noldorin [> and much enriched with words
drawn from the Adunaic language of the Dunedain, and from
the Noldorin]. But among themselves the kings and high lords,
and indeed all those of Numenorean blood in any degree, for
long used the Noldorin speech; and in that tongue they gave
names to men and to places throughout the realms of the heirs
of Elendil.
$14. In this way it had come about that at the time when the
events recorded in this book began it might be said that nearly
all speaking-folk of any race west of the east-eaves of Mirk-
wood spoke after some fashion this Common Speech; while
Men who dwelt in Eriador, the wide land between the Misty
Mountains and Ered Lindon, or in the coast-lands south of the
White Mountains, used the Westron only and had long forgot-
ten their own tongues. So it was with the folk of Gondor (other
than the lords) and of the Anfalas and beyond; and with the
Bree-folk I and the Dunlendings [> in the North]. East of the
Misty Mountains, even far to the north, the Common Speech
was known; though there, as in Esgaroth [> as beside the Long
Lake] or in Dale, or among the Beornings and the Woodmen of
the west-eaves of Mirkwood, Men also retained their own
tongues in daily use. The Eorlings, or the Rohirrim as they were
called in Gondor, still used their own northern tongue, yet all
but their humbler folk spoke also the Common Speech after
the manner of Gondor; for the Riders of Rohan had come out
of Eotheod near the sources of Anduin only some five hundred
years before the days here spoken of.
[The conclusion of this paragraph was rewritten thus: The
Eorlings, or the Rohirrim as they were called in Gondor, still
used their own northern tongue; for the Riders of Rohan had
come out of Eotheod near the sources of Anduin only some five
hundred years before the days here spoken of. Yet all but their
humbler folk spoke also the Common Speech after the manner
of Gondor. In the Dunland also the Dunlendings, a dwindling
people, remnant of those who had dwelt in western Rohan
before the coming of the Rohirrim, still clung to their own
speech. This was wholly unlike the Westron, and was de-
scended, as it seems, from some other Mannish tongue, not akin
to that of the Atani, Fathers of Men. A similar and kindred
language was probably once spoken in Bree: see (the footnote to
$25).]
$15. More remarkable it may be thought that the Common
Speech had also been learned by other races, Dwarves, Orcs,
and even Trolls. The case of the Dwarves can, however, be easily
understood. At this time they had no longer in the west-lands
any great cities or delvings where many lived together. For the
most part they were scattered, living in small groups among
other folk, often wandering, seldom staying long in any place,
until, as is told in the beginning of the Red Book, their old halls
under the Lonely Mountain were regained and the Dragon was
slain. They had therefore of necessity long used the Common
Speech in their dealings with other folk, even with Elves.' Not
that Dwarves were ever eager to teach their own tongue to
others. They were a secretive people, and they kept their own
speech to themselves, using it only when no strangers were near.
Indeed they even gave themselves 'outer' names, either in the
Westron or in the languages of Men among whom they dwelt,
but had also 'inner' and secret names in their own tongue which
they did not reveal. So it was that the northern Dwarves, the
people of Thorin and Dain, had names drawn from the
northern language of the Men of Dale, and their secret names
are not known to us. For that reason little is known of Dwarf-
speech at this period, save for a few names of mines and meres
and mountains.
$16 The Orcs had a language of their own, devised for them
by the Dark Lord of old, but it was so full of harsh and hideous
sounds and vile words that other mouths found it difficult to
compass, and few indeed were willing to make the attempt. And
these creatures, being filled with all malice and hatred, so that
they did not love even their own kind, had soon diversified their
barbarous and unwritten speech into as many jargons as there
were groups or settlements of Orcs. Thus they were driven to
use the language of their enemies even in conversing with other
Orcs of different breed or distant dwellings. In the Misty Moun-
tains, and in other lingering Orc-holds in the far North-west,
they had indeed abandoned their native tongue and used the
Common Speech, though in such a fashion as to make it
scarcely less unlovely than the Orkish.
$17. Trolls, in their beginning creatures of lumpish and
brutal nature, had nothing that could be called true language
(* For there was an ancient enmity between Dwarf and Elf and
neither would learn the other's tongue.)
of their own; but the evil Power had at various times made use
of them, teaching them what little they could learn, and even
crossing their breed with that of the larger Orcs. Trolls thus
took such language as they could from the Orcs, and in the
west-lands the Trolls of the hills and mountains spoke a debased
form of the Common Westron speech.
$18. Elves, it may be thought, had no need of other
languages than their own. They did not, indeed, like the
Dwarves hide their own language, and they were willing
to teach the Elven-tongues to any who desired or were able
to learn them. But these were few, apart from the lords of
Numenorean descent. The Elves, therefore, who remained in
the west-lands used the Common Speech in their dealings with
Men or other speaking-folk; but they used it in an older and
more gracious form, that of the lords of the Dunedain rather
than that of the Shire. Among themselves they spoke and sang
in Elven-tongues, and throughout Eriador from Lindon to
Imladrist [> Imladris] they used the Noldorin speech; for in
those lands, especially in Rivendell and at the Grey Havens, but
also elsewhere in other secret places, there were still many of
the exiled Noldor abiding or wandering in the wild. Beyond the
Misty Mountains there were still Eldar who used the Lemberin
[> Telerian] tongue. Such were the people of the elf-kingdom
in Northern Mirkwood, whence came Legolas. Lemberin
[> Telerian] was the native tongue also of Celeborn and the
Elves of the hidden land of Lorien. There the Common Speech
was known only to a few, for that people strayed seldom from
their borders.*
$19. The Elvish names that appear in this book are mainly
of Noldorin form; but some are Lemberin [> Telerian], of
which the chief are [added: Thranduil,] Legolas, Lorien, Caras
Galadon, Nimrodel, Amroth; and also the names of the House
of Dol Amroth: Finduilas, [added: Adrahil,] and Imrahil. The
exiled Eldar still preserved in memory, as has been said,
the High-elven Quenya; and it was from Noldorin visitants to
the Shire that Bilbo (and from him Frodo) learned a little of
that ancient speech. In Quenya is the polite greeting that Frodo
addressed to Gildor (in Chapter III). The farewell song of
Galadriel in Lorien (in Chapter ) [sic] is also in Quenya. Tree-
(* But the lady of that land, Galadriel, was of Noldorin race, and in
her household that language was also spoken.)
beard knew this tongue as the noblest of the 'hasty' languages,
and frequently used it. His address to Galadriel and Celeborn is
in Quenya; so are most of the words and names that he uses
which are not in the Common Speech.(9)
$20. To speak last of Hobbits. According to accounts
compiled in the Shire, the Hobbits, though in origin one race,
became divided in remote antiquity into three somewhat dif-
ferent breeds: Stoors, Harfoots, and Fallohides, which have
already been described. [Struck out:] No tradition, however,
remains of any difference of speech between these three kinds.(10)
$21. Since Hobbits were a people more nearly akin to Men
than any other of the speaking-folk of the ancient world, it
might be supposed that they would possess a language of their
own, different from the languages of Men but not unlike them.
Yet of this there is no evidence in any record or tradition.
Admittedly none of the legends of the Hobbits refer to times
earlier than some centuries after the beginning of the Third Age,
while their actual records did not begin until after the western
Hobbits had settled down, somewhere about Third Age 1300;
but it remains remarkable that all such traditions assume that
the only language spoken by Hobbits of any kind was the
Westron or Common Speech. They had, of course, many words
and usages peculiar to themselves, but the same could be said of
any other folk that used the Common Speech as a native tongue.
[The latter part of this paragraph, following any record or
tradition, was rewritten thus: They had, of course, many words
and usages peculiar to themselves, but the same could be said of
any other folk that used the Westron as a native tongue. It is true
that none of the legends of Hobbits refer to times earlier than
some centuries after the beginning of the Third Age, while their
actual records did not begin until after the western Hobbits had
settled down, somewhere about Third Age 1300, and had then
long adopted the Common Speech. Yet it remains remarkable
that in all such traditions, if any tongue other than the Common
Speech is mentioned, it is assumed that Hobbits spoke the
language of Men among whom, or near whom, they dwelt.]
$22. Among Hobbits [added: now] there are two opinions.
Some hold that originally they had a language peculiar to them-
selves. Others assert that from the beginning they spoke a Man-
nish tongue [> Mannish tongues], being in fact a branch of the
race of Men. But in any case it is agreed that after migration to
Eriador they soon adopted the Westron under the influence of
the Dunedain of the North-kingdom. The first opinion is now
favoured by Hobbits [> is favoured by many Hobbits], because
of their growing distaste for Men," but there is in fact no trace
to be discovered of any special Hobbit-language in antiquity.
The second opinion is clearly the right one, and is held by those
of most linguistic learning. Investigation not only of surviving
Hobbit-lore but of the far more considerable records of Gondor
supports it. All such enquiries show that before their crossing of
the Mountains the Hobbits spoke the same language as Men in
the higher vales of the Anduin, roughly between the Carrock
and the Gladden Fields.+ (11)
$23. Now that language was nearly the same as the
language of the ancestors of the Rohirrim; and it was also allied,
as has been said above, both to the languages of Men further
north and east (as in Dale and Esgaroth), and to those further
south from which the Westron itself was derived. It is thus
possible to understand the rapidity with which evidently the
Hobbits adopted the Common Speech as soon as they crossed
into Eriador, where it had long been current. In this way, too,
is explained the occurrence among the western and settled
Hobbits of many peculiar words not found in the Common
Speech but found in the tongues of Rohan and of Dale.++(12)
(* Supported, as it appears to them to be, by the fact that among
themselves they speak now a private language, though this is probably
only a descendant, the last to survive, of the old Common Speech.)
(+ [The following footnote was added: Though the Stoors,
especially the southern branch that long dwelt in the valley of the
Loudwater, by Tharbad and on the borders of Dunland, appear to
have acquired a language akin to Dunlandish, before they came north
and adopted in their turn the Common Speech.])
(++ In Gandalf's view the people of 'Gollum' or Smeagol were of
hobbit-kind. If so, their habits and dwelling-places mark them as
Stoors. Yet it is plain that they spoke [> as Stoors; though they appear
to have used] the Common Speech. Most probably they were a family
or small clan that, owing to some quarrel or some sudden 'homesick-
ness', turned back east and came down into Wilderland again beside
the River Gladden. There are many references in Hobbit legend to
families or small groups going off on their own 'into the wild', or
returning 'home'. For eastern Eriador was less friendly and fertile than
Wilderland and many of the tales speak of the hard times endured by
the early emigrants. It may be noted, however, that the names Deagol
and Smeagol [ > Deagol and Smeagol] are both words belonging to the
Mannish languages of the upper Anduin.)
$24. An example of this is provided by the name Stoor itself.
It seems originally to have meant 'big', and though no such
word is found in the Common Speech, it is usual in the language
of Dale. The curious Hobbit-word mathom, which has been
mentioned, is clearly the same as the word mathum used in
Rohan for a 'treasure' or a 'rich gift'. The horn given at parting
to Meriadoc by the Lady Eowyn was precisely a mathum.
Again, smile or smial, in Hobbit-language the word for an in-
habited hole, especially one deep-dug and with a long, narrow,
and often hidden entrance, seems related to the word smygel in
Rohan meaning 'a burrow', and more remotely to the name
Smeagol [> Smeagol] (cited [in the footnote to $23]), and to
Smaug the name in [> among men of] the North for the Drag-
on of the Lonely Mountain.(13) But most remarkable of all are
the Hobbit month-names, concerning which see the note on
Calendar and Dates.(14)
$25. The Hobbits in the west-lands of Eriador became much
mingled together, and eventually they began to settle down.
Some of their lesser and earlier settlements had long dis-
appeared and been forgotten in Bilbo's time; but one of the
earliest to become important still endured, if much reduced in
size. This was at Bree, and in the country round about. Long
before the settlement at Bree Hobbits had adopted the Common
Speech, and all the names of places that they gave were in that
language; while the older names, of Elvish or forgotten Man-
nish origin,* they often translated (as Fornost to Norbury), or
twisted into a familiar shape (as Elvish Baranduin 'brown river'
to Brandywine).
[The end of this paragraph was rewritten thus: ... (as Fornost
to Norbury). The Elvish names of hills and rivers often endured
changed only to fit better into Hobbit speech. But the Brandy-
wine is an exception. Its older name was the Malvern, derived
from its Noldorin name Malevarn, but the new name appears in
the earliest records. Both names refer to the river's colour, often
in flood a golden brown, which is indeed the meaning of the
(* The Men of Bree, who claimed, no doubt justly, to have dwelt
in those regions from time out of mind, long before the coming of
Elendil, had of course also adopted the Common Speech, but there
were names in those parts that pointed to an older Mannish tongue, I
only remotely connected if at all [> unconnected] with the language
of the Fathers of Men, or Westron. Bree is said in that tongue to have
signified 'hill', and Chet (as in Chetwood, Archet) 'forest'.)
Elvish name. This was further changed to read: ... Of this the
Brandywine is an example. Its Elvish name was the Baranduin
'brown river'. Both names refer to the river's colour, often in
flood a golden brown, but the Hobbit name is historically only
a picturesque alteration of the Noldorin name.]
$26. As soon as they had settled down the Hobbits took to
letters. These they learned, with many other matters, from the
Dunedain; for the North-kingdom had not yet come to an end
in Eriador at that time. The letters used by the Dunedain, and
learned and adopted by the Hobbits, were those of the Noldorin
or Feanorian alphabet (see below).(15) It was soon after their
learning of letters, about Third Age 1300, that Hobbits began
to set down and collect the considerable store of tales and
legends and oral annals and genealogies that they already
possessed. The lore-loving Fallohides played a chief part in this.
The original documents had, of course, in Bilbo's time long been
worn out or lost, but many of them had been much copied.
When the Shire was colonized, about Third Age 1600, it is said
that the leading families among the migrants took with them
most of the writings then in existence.
$27. In the Shire, which proved a rich and comfortable
country, the old lore was largely neglected; but there were
always some Hobbits who studied it and kept it in memory; and
copying and compilation, and even fictitious elaboration, still
went on. In Bilbo's time there were in the book-hoards many
manuscripts of lore more than 500 years old. The oldest known
book, The Great Writ of Tuckborough, popularly called
Yellowskin, was supposed to be nearly a thousand years old. It
dealt in annalistic form with the deeds of Took notables from
the foundation of the Shire, though its earliest hand belonged to
a period at least four centuries later.
$28. In this way it came about that the Hobbits of the Shire,
especially in the great families, such as Took, Oldbuck (later
Brandybuck), and Bolger, developed the habit, strange and yet
not unparallelled in our times, of giving names to their children
derived not from their daily language nor from fresh invention,
but from books and legends. These to the Hobbits high-
sounding names were often in somewhat comic contrast with
the more homely family names. Hobbits were, of course, fully
aware of this contrast and amused by it.
[The following passage was an addition: The sections that
follow are written mainly for those of linguistic curiosity.
Others may neglect them. For these histories are intelligible, if
it is assumed that the Common Speech of the time was English,
and that if any language of Men appears which is related to the
Common Speech, though not the same, it will be represented
by languages of our world that are related to English: as for
example the archaic language of Rohan is represented by
ancient English, or the related tongues of the far North (as in
Dale) by names of a Norse character.
But this was not, of course, historically the case. None of the
languages of the period were related discernibly to any now
known or spoken. The substitution of English (or forms of
speech related to modern English) for the Common Speech (and
kindred tongues) of the day has involved a process of trans-
lation, not only of narrative and dialogue but also of nomen-
clature, which is described below, for the benefit of those
interested in such matters.]
On Translation.(16)
$29. The linguistic situation sketched above, simple'
though it is compared with that observable in many European
countries in our times, presents several problems to a translator
who wishes to present a picture of Hobbit life and lore in those
distant days; especially if he is more concerned to represent, as
closely as he can, in terms now intelligible the actual feeling
and associations of words and names than to preserve a mere
phonetic accuracy.
$30. The Elven-tongues I have left untouched. I have in my
selection and arrangement of matter from the once famous and
much copied Red Book reduced the citations of these languages,
apart from the unavoidable names of places and persons, to a
minimum, keeping only enough to give some indication of their
sound and style. That has not been altogether easy, since I have
been obliged to transliterate the words and names from the rich
and elegant Feanorian alphabet, specially devised for them, into
our own less adequate letters, and yet present forms that while
reasonably close to the phonetic intentions of the originals are
(* We are in fact in this book only primarily concerned with the
Elvish Noldorin and the Mannish 'Common Speech' (with some local
variations), while the Quenya or 'Elf-latin' and the archaic tongue of
the Rohirrim and the Elvish Lemberin make an occasional appear-
ance.)
not (I hope) too strange or uncouth to modern eyes.*(17)
$31. My treatment of the Common Speech (and of
languages connected with it) has, however, been quite different.
It has been drastic, but I hope defensible. I have turned the
Common Speech and all related things into the nearest English
equivalents. First of all, the narrative and dialogue I have nat-
urally been obliged to translate as closely as possible. The dif-
ferences between the use of this speech in different places and by
persons of higher and lower degree, e.g. by Frodo and by Sam,
in the Shire and in Gondor, or among the Elves, I have tried to
represent by variations in English of approximately the same
kind. In the result these differences have, I fear, been somewhat
obscured. The divergence of the vocabulary, idiom, and pro-
nunciation in the free and easy talk of the Shire from the daily
language of Gondor was really greater than is here represented,
or could be represented without using a phonetic spelling for
the Shire and an archaic diction for Gondor that would have
puzzled or infuriated modern readers. The speech of Orcs was
actually more filthy and degraded than I have shown it. If I
had tried to use an 'English' more near to the reality it would
have been intolerably disgusting and to many readers hardly
intelligible.
$32. It will be observed that Hobbits such as Frodo, and
other persons such as Aragorn and Gandalf, do not always use
quite the same style throughout. This is intentional. Hobbits of
birth and reading often knew much of higher and older forms
of the Common Tongue than those of their colloquial Shire-
usage, and they were in any case quick to observe and adopt a
more archaic mode when conversing with Elves, or Men of high
lineage. It was natural for much-travelled persons, especially for
those who like Aragorn were often at pains to conceal their
origin and business, to speak more or less according to the man-
ner of the people.among whom they found themselves.
Note
$33. I will here draw attention to a feature of the languages
dealt with that has presented some difficulty. All these
languages, Mannish and Elvish, had, or originally had, no
distinction between the singular and plural of the second
(* A note on my spelling and its intended values will be found
below.)
person pronouns; but they had a marked distinction between
the familiar forms and the courteous.
$34. This distinction was fully maintained in all Elvish
tongues, and also in the older and more elevated forms of the
Common Speech, notably in the daily usage of Gondor. In
Gondor the courteous forms were used by men to all women,
irrespective of rank, other than their lovers, wives, sisters, and
children. To their parents children used the courteous forms
throughout their lives, as soon as they had learned to speak
correctly. Among grown men the courteous form was used more
sparingly, chiefly to those of superior rank and office, and then
mainly on official or formal occasions, unless the superior was
also of greater age. Old people were often addressed with the
courteous form by much younger men or women, irrespective
of all other considerations.
$35. It was one of the most notable features of Shire-speech
that the courteous form had in Bilbo's time disappeared from
the daily use, though its forms were not wholly forgotten: a
reversal of the case of thou and you in English. It lingered still
among the more rustic Hobbits, but then, curiously enough,
only as an endearment. It was thus used both by and to parents
and between dear friends.
$36. Most of these points cannot be represented in English;
but it may be remembered by readers that this is one of the fea-
tures referred to when people of Gondor speak of the strange-
ness of hobbit-language. Pippin, for instance, used the familiar
form throughout his first interview with the Lord Denethor.
This may have amused the aged Steward, but it must have
astonished the servants that overheard him. No doubt this free
use of the familiar form was one of the things that helped to
spread the popular rumour in the City that Pippin was a person
of very high rank in his own country.
$37. Only in a few places where it seemed specially import-
ant have I attempted to represent such distinctions in trans-
lation, though this cannot be done systematically. Thus thou
and thee and thy have occasionally been used (as unusual and
archaic in English) to represent a ceremonious use of the cour-
teous form, as in the formal words spoken at the coronation of
Aragorn. On the other hand the sudden use of thou, thee in the
dialogue of Faramir and eowyn is meant to represent (there
being no other means of doing this in English) a significant
change from the courteous to the familiar. The thee used by Sam
Gamgee to Rose at the end of the book is intentional, but corre-
sponds there to his actual use of the old-fashioned courteous
form as a sign of affection.
$38. Passing from the translation of narrative and dialogue
to names I found yet greater difficulties. For it seemed to me that
to preserve all names, Elvish and Westron alike, in their original
forms would obscure an essential feature of the times, as
observed by the ears and eyes of Hobbits, through whom for
the most part we are ourselves observing them: the contrast
between a wide-spread language, as ordinary and diurnal to the
people of that day as is English now to English-speakers, and
the remains of far older more reverend and more secret tongues.
All names, if merely transliterated, would seem to modern
readers equally strange and remote.
$39. For instance, if I had left unaltered not only the Elvish
name Imladrist [> Imladris] but also the Westron name Car-
bandur, both would have appeared alien. But the contrast
between Imladrist [> Imladris] and Rivendell, a translation of
Carbandur (18) and like it having a plain meaning in everyday
language, represents far more truly the actual feeling of the day,
especially among Hobbits. To refer to Rivendell as Imladrist
[> Imladris] was to Men and Hobbits as if one now was to
speak of Winchester as Camelot. Save that the identity was cer-
tain, while in Rivendell there still dwelt a lord of renown older
than Arthur would be, were he still living in Winchester today.
$40. To translate the names in the Common Speech into
English in this way has the advantage also that it often, as in the
case of Rivendell, provides the key to the meaning of the Elvish
name as well; for the one was frequently a direct translation of
the other. This is not, however, always so. Some place-names
have no meaning now discernible and derive, no doubt, from
still older and forgotten days. In some cases the names had dif-
ferent meanings in different tongues. Thus the C.S. Dwarrow-
delf *(19) was a translation of the Dwarvish name Khazad-dum,
(* That is 'Dwarves' mine'. I have translated the actual C.S.
Phuru-nargian as Dwarrowdelf, since in Bilbo's time the word phuru
(related to phur- 'to delve') was obsolete in ordinary speech, and
nargian contained a derivative form of narac 'dwarf' that had long
disappeared from use. Dwarrow is what the ancient English genitive
plural dwerga 'of dwarves' would have become had it survived in use
or in a place-name.)
whereas the Elvish name Moria (older Mornya) meant 'black
pit'.
$41. The nomenclature of the Hobbits themselves and of the
places in which they lived has, nonetheless, presented some
obstacles to the satisfactory carrying out of this process of trans-
lation. Their place-names, being (in the Shire especially) almost
all originally of C.S. form, have proved least difficult. I have
converted them into as nearly similar English terms as I could
find, using the elements found in English place-names that
seemed suitable both in sense and in period: that is in being still
current (like hill), or slightly altered or reduced from current
words (like ton beside town), or no longer found outside place-
names (like wich, bold, bottle). The Shire seems to me very
adequately to translate the Hobbit Suza-t, since this word was
now only used by them with reference to their country, though
originally it had meant 'a sphere of occupation (as of the land
claimed by a family or clan), of office, or business'. In Gondor
the word suza was still applied to the divisions of the realm,
such as Anorien, Ithilien, Lebennin, for which in Noldorin the
word lhann was used. Similarly farthing has been used for the
four divisions of the Shire, because the Hobbit word tharni was
an old word for 'quarter' seldom used in ordinary language,
where the word for 'quarter' was tharantin 'fourth part'. In
Gondor tharni was used for a silver coin, the fourth part of the
castar (in Noldorin the canath or fourth part of the mirian).(20)
$42. The personal names of the Hobbits were, however,
much more awkward to manage on this system. Rightly or
wrongly, I have attempted to translate these also into English
terms, or to substitute equivalents, wherever possible. Many of
the family names have more or less obvious meanings in the
Common Speech: such as Goodenough, Bracegirdle, Proud-
foot, Burrows, and the like, and these can fairly be treated in the
same way as the place-names.* In these cases translation will
not, I think, be quarrelled with, and may even be allowed to be
necessary. For if his name clearly meant to contemporaries
'horn-blower', it is truer to the facts to call a character
Hornblower than Rasputa,(21) which though the actual Hobbit
(* Some family-names, but fewer than in England, for the use of such
names outside a few 'great families' was of more recent development,
were actually place-names or derived from them. Gamgee is one (see
below).)
sound-form is now meaningless. But, of course, if a large part of
the names are thus anglicized the rest must be made to fit; for a
mixture of English and alien names would give a wholly false
impression. It is thus with the less clearly interpretable names
that difficulties arise. Some are border-line cases, such as
Baggins itself, which because of its importance I have dealt with
below more fully. Some defy translation, since they were to the
Hobbits themselves just 'names', of forgotten origin and mean-
ing. Tuc,(22) for instance, the name of the most eminent of the
'great families' of the Shire. According to their own tradition
tuca was an old word meaning 'daring',(23) but this appears to be
a wholly unfounded guess; and I have in this case been content
with anglicization of the form to Took.
$43. More debatable, perhaps, has been my procedure with
the many curious names that Shire-hobbits, as observed above,
gave to their children. Here I long hesitated between leaving
them alone, and finding equivalents for them. I have in the end
compromised. I have left some unaltered. These are the not
uncommon names which even to Hobbits had no 'meaning' or
derivation or connexion with books or legends: names such
as Bilbo, Bungo, Bingo, Polo, Porro, Ponto. Hobbits readily
coined such names, and I do not think that the impression made
by them in their day differed much from their effect today.*(24)
But it would have given a very false impression of Hobbitry to
the modern reader, if these personal names had in general
been simply transliterated. All would then have today sounded
equally outlandish, whereas to Hobbits personal names had
many gradations of association and suggestion. Some derived
from early history and ancient Hobbit-legend; some from
stories about Elves and Men and even about dwarves and
giants. Some were rare, others familiar; some comic in tone,
others romantic or elevated; some were of high and some of
lower social standing.
$44. It seemed to me that, once embarked on translation,
even of dialogue, names of this sort would be best represented
by drawing on the similar wealth of names that we find or could
find in our own traditions, in Celtic, Frankish, Latin and Greek
and other sources.
$45. This method entails, of course, far-reaching alteration
(* In fact they ended as a rule in a (Bunga) not o, since an ending a
was as a rule masculine. I have changed the a to o.)
of the actual phonetic forms of such given-names; but I do not
feel it more illegitimate than altering Rasputa to Hornblower,
or indeed than translating the dialogue of the Red Book into
English, whereby naturally its true sound is changed and many
of its verbal points are obscured. I have, in any case, done the
'translation' with some care. The fondness of families for runs
of similar names, or of fathers for giving to their sons names
that either alliterated with their own or had a similar ending,
has been duly represented.* The choice of equivalents has been
directed partly by meaning (where this' is discernible in the
original names), partly by general tone, and partly by length
and phonetic style. The heroic and romantic names, of Fallo-
hide legend according to the Hobbits, specially but not solely
affected by Tooks, have been represented by names of a
Germanic or Frankish cast. 'Classical' names or ones of similar
form on the other hand represent usually names derived by
Hobbits from tales of ancient times and far kingdoms of
Men. +(25)
$46. Hobbits very frequently gave their daughters flower-
names. But even these are not so simple to deal with as might be
expected. Where the flower is certainly to be identified I have
naturally translated the name into English (or botanical Latin).
But not all the wild flowers of the Shire, and certainly not all the
flowers cultivated in its gardens can be identified with flowers
that are now familiar. In cases of doubt I have done the best
that I could. For instance: I have translated Hamanullas (26) by
Lobelia, because although I do not know precisely what flower
is intended, hamanullas appears to have been usually small and
blue and cultivated in gardens, and the word seems to have been
a gardener's rather than a popular name.
$47. For the benefit of the curious in such matters I add here
a few notes in supplement of what has been said above to illus-
trate my procedure.
(* The curious alternation between initial H and initial I in the names
of the Old Took's many children represents an actual alternation
between S and E.)
(+ Thus the perhaps to us rather ridiculous subnames or titles of the
Brandybucks adopted by the heads of the family, Astyanax, Aureus,
Magnificus, were originally half-jesting and were in fact drawn from
traditions about the Kings at Norbury. [This note was later struck
out.])
Family names.
Took. Hobbit Tuc, as noted above.(27)
Baggins. H. Labingi. It is by no means certain that this name is
really connected with C.S. labin 'a bag'; but it was believed to
be so, and one may compare Labin-nec 'Bag End' as the name
of the residence of Bungo Baggins (Bunga Labingi). I have
accordingly rendered the name Labingi by Baggins, which
gives, I think, a very close equivalent in readily appreciable
modern terms.
Brandybuck. Earlier Oldbuck. These are direct translations
of H. Assargamba [> Brandugamba] and Zuragamba.(28)
[Added: Zaragamba is translated by sense, but since Zara-
gamba (Old-buck) was altered to Brandugamba by adoption
of the first half of the river-name (Branduhim) I have used
for it Brandybuck. For the treatment of the river-name
Branduhim see (the note at the end of the text, $58).]
Bolger. Merely an anglicized form of H. Bolgra. By chance in
C.S. bolg- has much the same significance as our 'bulge', so
that if Bolger suggests to a modern reader a certain fatness
and rotundity, so did Bolgra in its own time and place.
Boffin. Anglicized from H. Bophan. This was said (by mem-
bers of the family) to mean 'one who laughs loud'. I thought
at first, therefore, of rendering it by Loffin; but since, as in the
case of Took, the family tradition is a mere guess, while in
C.S. Bophan had in fact no suggestion of laughter, I have
remained content with a slight anglicization.(29)
Gamgee. H. Galbassi. A difficult name. According to family
tradition (in this case reliable) duly set out by Sam Gamgee at
the end of the Red Book, this name was really derived from a
place-name: Galb(b)as. That name I have closely rendered by
Gamwich (to be pronounced Gammidge), comparing galb-=
Gam with C.S. galap, galab-= 'game'; and the ending bas in
place-names with our -wick, -wich. Galbassi may thus be
fairly represented by Gammidgee. In adopting the spelling
Gamgee I have been led astray by Sam Gamgee's connexion
with the family of Cotton into a jest which though Hobbit-
like enough does not really reside in the suggestions of the
names Galbassi and Lothran to people of the Shire.(30)
Cotton. H. Lothran. A not uncommon village name in the
Shire, corresponding closely to our Cotton (cot-tun), being
derived from C.S. hlotho 'a two-roomed dwelling', and ran 'a
village, a small group of dwellings on a hill-side'. But in this
case the name may be an alteration of hloth-ram(a), 'cot-
man, cottager'. Lothram, which I have rendered Cotman,
was the name of Farmer Cotton's grandfather. It is notable
that, though the resemblance is not so complete as between
our Cotton and the noun cotton, in C.S. the words luthur,
luthran meant 'down, fluff'. But unfortunately no such
suggestions are associated with Galbas, and the village of
that name was known only locally for rope-making, and no
tissues were produced there of any fibre softer than hemp.
$48. Hobbit.
Hobbit. This, I confess, is my own invention; but not one
devised at random. This is its origin. It is, for one thing, not
wholly unlike the actual word in the Shire, which was cubuc
(plural cubugin).* But this cubuc was not a word of general
use in the Common Speech and required an equivalent that
though natural enough in an English context did not actually
occur in standard English. Some Hobbit-historians have held
that cubuc was an ancient native word, perhaps the last sur-
vivor of their own forgotten language. I believe, however, that
this is not the case. The word is, I think, a local reduction of
an early C.S. name given to Hobbits, or adopted by them in
self-description, when they came into contact with Men. It
appears to be derived from an obsolete cubug 'hole-dweller',
which elsewhere fell out of use. In support of this I would
point to the fact that Meriadoc himself actually records that
the King of Rohan used the word cugbagu 'hole-dweller' for
cubuc or 'Hobbit'. Now the Rohirrim spoke a language that
was in effect an archaic form of the Common Speech.+ The
(* For another, I must admit that its faint suggestion of rabbit
appealed to me. Not that hobbits at all resembled rabbits, unless it be
in burrowing. Still, a jest is a jest as all cubugin will allow, and after
all it does so happen that the coney (well-known in the Shire if not in
ancient England) was called tapuc, a name recalling cubuc, if not so
clearly as hobbit recalls rabbit. [This note was later struck out.])
(+ More accurately: the tongue of the Mark of Rohan was derived
from a northern speech which, belonging at first to the Middle
Anduin, had later moved north to the upper waters of that river,
continued on page 50)
primitive form represented by Rohan cug-bagu would in the
later C.S. have acquired the form cubug(u), and so Hobbit
cubuc.(31) Since, as is explained below, I have represented C.S.
by modern English and have therefore turned the language of
Rohan into archaic English terms also, I have converted the
archaic cugbagu of Rohan into an ancient English hol-bytla
'hole-dweller'. Of this hol-bytla (with the common loss of l
in English between a, o, u, and b, m, v) my fictitious hobbit
would be a not impossible local 'corruption'.
$49. Personal names.
Bilbo. The actual H. name was Bilba, as explained above.(32)
Frodo. On the other hand the H. name was Maura.(33) This was
not a common name in the Shire, but I think it probably once
had a meaning, even if that had long been forgotten. No word
maur- can be found in the contemporary C.S., but again
recourse to comparison with the language of Rohan is
enlightening. In that language there was an adjective maur-,
no longer current at this time, but familiar in verse or higher
styles of speech; it meant 'wise, experienced'. I have, there-
fore, rendered Maura by Frodo, an old Germanic name, that
appears to contain the word frod which in ancient English
corresponded closely in meaning to Rohan maur.
Meriadoc (Merry). The real name was Chilimanzar [> Cili-
manzar], a high-sounding and legendary name. I have chosen
Meriadoc for the following reasons. Buckland in many ways
occupied a position with regard to the Shire such as Wales
does to England; and it is not wholly inappropriate, there-
fore, to represent its many very peculiar names by names of
a Celtic or specifically Welsh character. Among such names
I chose Meriadoc, mainly because it gives naturally a
shortening 'Merry'; for the abbreviation of Chilimanzar
[> Cilimanzar] by which this character was usually known
was Chilic [> Cilic], a C.S. word meaning exactly 'gay or
merry'.(34)
before coming south in the days of Eorl. It was thus nearly akin to the
language of the lower Anduin, the basis of the C.S., but isolated in the
North it had changed far less and had remained little mingled with
alien words.
Peregrin (Pippin). The H. name was Razanul [> Razanur].
This was the name of a legendary traveller, and probably con-
tains the C.S. elements raza 'stranger', razan 'foreign'. I there-
fore chose Peregrin to represent it, though it does not fit quite
so well. Of Peregrin, Pippin is I suppose a not impossible
'pet-form'; but it is not so close to its original, as is Razal
[> Razar] (a kind of small red apple) by which abbreviation
Razanul Tuca [> Razanur Tuc] was almost inevitably known
to his contemporaries.(35)
Sam. His real name was Ban, short for Banzir. In C.S. ba-, ban-
occurred in many words with the meaning 'half-, almost',
while zir(a) meant 'wise'. I have therefore translated his name
by ancient English samwis of similar sense. This was con-
venient, since Samwise will yield an abbreviation Sam. Now
Ban was a common short name in the Shire, but was usually
then derived from the more elevated name Bannatha, as Sam
is with us usually shortened from Samuel.(36)
The following passage ($$50-1) is a note (a part of the manuscript as
originally written) to the name Samuel, but in appearance is a part of
the main text, and is most conveniently given so.
$50. It will be observed that I have not [> rarely] used
Scriptural names or names of Hebraic origin to represent
Hobbit-names. There is nothing in Hobbit lore or history that
corresponds [added: closely] to this element in our names.
Bildad, a name occurring among the Bolgers, is an accidental
resemblance; it is a genuine Hobbit name which I have left un-
altered. Other abbreviations like Tom and Mat I have also often
left unchanged. Many such monosyllables were current in the
Shire, but were the shortenings of genuine Hobbit names. For
instance Tom of Tomacca, Tomburan; Mat of Mattalic; Bill
(Bil) of Bildad (Bildat), Bilcuzal, or any of the numerous names
ending in -bil, -mil, as Arambil. Farmer Cotton's full name was
in fact Tomacca Lothran.(37) [Added: Tobias (Hornblower) is an
exception. I have used this name because the resemblance of the
real Hobbit-name Tobi was so close, and it seemed inevitable
to translate Zara-tobi by 'Old Toby'; no other name could be
found to fit so well. This was changed to: Tobias (Hornblower)
is not an exception. Tobias was his real name, though accented
Tobias. I have retained this name because the resemblance of
the real Hobbit-name was so close, &c.]
$51. Barnabas is [added: not] an exception. Barnabas
Butterbur was a Man of Bree, not a hobbit. I gave him this name
for various reasons. First of all a personal one. On an old grey
stone in a quiet churchyard in southern England I once saw in
large letters the name Barnabas Butter. That was long ago and
before I had seen the Red Book, but the name came back to me
when the character of the stout innkeeper of Bree was presented
to me in Frodo's record. The more so because his name, in
agreement with the generally botanical type of name favoured
in Bree, was actually Butterburr, or in the C.S. Zilbarapha
[> Zilbirapha]. Barnabas has unfortunately only a very slight
phonetic similarity to the real first-name of the innkeeper: Bara-
batta (or Batti). This was the nickname of the landlord of 'The
Pony' which he had borne so long that if he ever had another
given-name it had been forgotten: it means 'quick-talker or
babbler'. Still, in converting Batti Zilbarapha [> Zilbirapha]
into Barney Butterbur I do not think I have been unjust.(38)
$52. A final consequence of the conversion of the Common
Speech, and of all names formed in that language, into English
terms has already been referred to above. It entailed translation
of the related languages of Rohan and the North into terms that
would correspond linguistically, as closely as possible, to the
ancient situation.
$53 In the records of the Red Book there are in several
places allusions to the fact that Hobbits hearing the tongue of
the Riders of Rohan felt that it was akin to their own, and
recognized some of the words used, though they could not
understand the language as a whole. Since I had, necessarily,
converted the C.S. of the Hobbits into English, it seemed to me
that it would be absurd then to leave the related language of
Rohan in its wholly alien form. Now the tongue of the Rohirrim
was not only related to the C.S., but it had remained in a much
more archaic state, and it was, even in its newer southern home,
much less mingled with alien (Noldorin and Quenya) words; I
therefore substituted for it a form of language resembling Old
English, since this tongue, that was removed from its ancestral
home to another, closely corresponds in its relation to modern
English (especially in its freedom from accretions of French and
Latin origin) with the relations of the tongues of the Shire and
the Mark.
$54 This translation was not difficult, since the Rohirrim in
fact used a very similar type of nomenclature to that of our own
ancestors. I have usually considered the sense of their names
rather than the form; except that I have chosen names in Old
English of the same length, where possible, and have only used
compound names, such as Freawine, Eomer, Eowyn, Hasufel,
Halifirien, when the originals were also compounded. The ele-
ment eo-, which so often appears (not unnaturally, being an old
word meaning 'horse', among a people devoted to horses), rep-
resents an element loho-, lo- of the same sense. Thus Eotheod,
'Horse-folk' or 'Horse-land', translates Lohtur. Theoden, as
are many of the other royal names, is an old word for 'king',
corresponding to Rohan turac-.(39)
$55. Note. In a few cases I have, not quite consistently,
modified the words and names of the Mark, making them more
like modern English, especially in spelling. Examples of this
process in varying degrees are: Dunharrow (= Dun-harug
'hill-sanctuary'), Starkhorn, Entwash, Helm's Deep, Combe
(= Cumb); Halifirien (= Halig-firgen 'holy-mountain'); Fen-
march for Fenmerce; Shadowfax for Scadufax. In a similar way
in 'The Hobbit' Oakenshield was anglicized from Eikinskialdi.
The name Rohan itself is of Noldorin origin, a translation of the
native Lograd (sc. Eo-marc 'the Horse-maik' or 'Borderland of
the Horsemen'). Its strictly correct form was Rochann, but the
form Rohan represents the actual pronunciation of Gondor, in
which medial ch was colloquially weakened to h.
$56. This translation had a disadvantage which I did not
foresee. The 'linguistic notes' on the origin of peculiar Hobbit
words had also to be 'translated'. I have already alluded to the
translation of the actual relation of Rohan cugbagu and Shire
cubuc into an imagined one of holbytla and hobbit. Other
examples are these (cf. [$24]): Stoor in relation to a Northern
word meaning 'big' (cf. Scandinavian stor- 'big') is a translation
of actual Hobbit tung (40) in relation to a similar word in Dale.
Supposed Hobbit mathom in relation to Rohan (that is Old
English) mathum is a translation of actual Hobbit cast (older
castu) compared with Rohan castu.
$57. Similarly, Rohan smygel, actually an Old English word
for a burrow, related to a Northern stem smug / smeag
(smaug),(41) here represents the genuine Rohan trahan related to
Hobbit tran. From smygel I have derived an imaginary modern
smile (or smial) having a similar relation to the older form.
Smeagol and Deagol are thus Old English equivalents for actual
Trahand and Nuhund 'apt to creep into a hole' and 'apt to hide,
secretive' respectively. (Smaug, the Dragon's name, is a repre-
sentation in similar terms, in this case of a more Scandinavian
character, of the Dale name Tragu, which was probably related
to the trah- stem in the Mark and Shire.)
$58. Note. In cases where 'folk-etymology' has operated
to alter older (Elvish) names into the appearance of names in the
C.S. special difficulty may be met, since it is unlikely that suit-
able words will be found in modern English that will at once
translate the C.S. name and yet also have some similarity in
sound to the Elvish name. The chief example is that of the River
Baranduin, the ancient boundary eastward of the Shire. This is
an Elvish name composed of baran 'golden-brown' and duin
'(large) river'. But it was by the Hobbits picturesquely perverted
into Branduhim, signifying in their tongue 'foaming beer'
(brand(u) 'foam'; him(a) 'beer'). I have imitated this by calling
the river the Brandywine, similar in sound and a very possible
'corruption' of Baranduin, although the sense is not very closely
similar. (There is, in fact, no evidence for the distillation of
brandy in the Shire.)
$59 For the same reasons the Northern, or rather North-
easterly, 'outer' names of the Dwarves taken from the Mannish
languages of that region have been all given a Scandinavian
style: they are indeed all genuine Norse dwarf-names.(42)
NOTES
1. The idea of the three kinds of Hobbit, Harfoots, Stoors, and
Fallohides, arose in the first of the two texts (F 1), and was then
transferred (before the second text F 2 was written) to the
Prologue (see note 10 below, and p. 10). But the text of the latter
(P 5) in which it appeared gave only the old story of Bilbo and
Gollum, and thus must have been earlier than July 1950: see p. 7.
2. F 1 as written had 'Human', subsequently changed to 'Mannish';
this term occurs later in F 1 as first written. See the commentary
on $2.
3. Atani: in F 1 as written no Elvish name appears here, but
Atanatari was added in the margin, then changed to Atanni (so
spelt).
4. As originally written, F 1 had: 'In that war the Fathers of Men
aided the Elves, and lived with them and fought beside them; and
their chieftains learned the Noldorin speech, and some indeed
forsook their own tongue, even in the daily use of their own
houses.' This was changed to: 'In that war three houses of the
Fathers of Men aided the Elves, and lived with them and fought
beside them; and the people of these houses learned the Noldorin
speech, and forsook their own tongue.' On this see the commen-
tary on $7.
The final reading in F 2, 'the lords of these houses learned the
Noldorin speech', belongs with the changes made in $9 and $13
introducing Adunaic, which were made after the third version
of the text had been written, or was at any rate in progress (see
pp. 74-5).
5. Throughout F 2 the name was written Dunedein, subsequently
corrected at all occurrences to Dunedain (the spelling in F 1).
This is not further indicated in the text printed, where I have spelt
the name in the usual form.
6. At first F 1 read here: 'This tongue was in Noldorin called
Falathren "Shore-language", but by its speakers Westnish or the
Common Speech.' The name Westnish was used throughout F 1,
changed everywhere to Westron (see the commentary on $9). The
present sentence was altered to read: '... but by its speakers
Unduna (that is Westron) or Soval Phare the Common Speech.'
7. F 1 has: 'First: the Numenoreans had not been wholly sundered
from the Eldar that remained in Middle-earth, and there had been
much coming and going between Numenor and the westlands.'
8. After 'in the days of its blessedness' F 1 has: 'and there the
language of the Kings of Men had changed little and slowly. And
the like may be said of the Eldar.'
9. For the passage in F 2 concerning Treebeard F 1 has: 'As was
natural in one so ancient Treebeard also knew this tongue, and
such words and names as he is here recorded to have used, other
than those in the Common Speech, are Quenya.'
10. F 1 is here altogether different. Following the words 'To speak
last of Hobbits' it continues:
These were a people who, as has been said, were more nearly
akin to Men than any other of the speaking-peoples of the an-
cient world. Their language must then be supposed to have been
of similar kind and origin to the language of Men. But, owing
to the absence of all records among the Hobbits before their
settlement in the West, the remoter history of Hobbit-language
is difficult and obscure. [This passage was struck out.]
Among the Hobbits of the Shire, though a love of learning
was far from general (unless it be of genealogical lore), there
were always some few, especially in the greater families, who
were lore-masters, and gathered information concerning older
times and distant lands, either from their own traditions, or
from Elves and Men and Dwarves. According to the accounts
thus compiled in the Shire, Hobbits, though originally one
race, became divided in remote antiquity into three somewhat
different kinds: Stoors, Harfoots, and Fallohides.
Here there follows in F 1 an account of the three kinds that is
already very close to that in the Prologue (FR pp. 12-13); and it
is clear that it was here that the conception of the three Hobbit-
kinds first entered (see the commentary on $20). It is notable that
while the actual wording of F 1 was little changed subsequently,
the Stoors were at first placed before the Harfoots, and a part of
the description of the Harfoots was at first applied to the Stoors
and vice versa.
The Stoors were broader, heavier in build, and had less hair
on their feet and more on their chins, and preferred flat lands
and riversides. [Added: Their feet and hands were large.] The
Harfoots were browner of skin, smaller and shorter, and they
were beardless and bootless; they preferred highlands and hill-
sides. [Added: Their hands and feet were neat and nimble.] The
Fallohides were fairer of skin and often of hair, and were taller
than the others; they were lovers of trees and woodlands.
[Added: All Hobbits were 'good shots' with stone, sling or
bow, but the Fallohides were the surest on the mark.]
The Stoors [> Harfoots] had much to do with Dwarves in
ancient times, and long lived in the foothills of the Misty
Mountains. They moved westward early, and crossed the
Mountains and roamed over the land of Eriador beyond, as far
as Weathertop or further, while the others were still in Wilder-
land. [Struck out: The Harfoots lingered long by the Great
River, and were friendly with Men. They came westward after
the Stoors.] They were probably the most normal and rep-
resentative variety of Hobbits and were certainly the most
numerous. They were the most inclined to settle, and the most
addicted to living in holes and tunnels. [Added: The Stoors
lingered by the banks of the Great River, and were friendly
with Men. They came westward after the Harfoots, owing to
the great increase of Men in Anduin Vale according to the[ir]
tales, and followed the course of the Bruinen (or Loudwater)
southwards.] The Fallohides were the least numerous, a north-
erly branch....
The text F 1 then proceeds in almost the same words as in the
Prologue, as far as 'they were often found as leaders or chieftains
among clans of Stoors or Harfoots' (FR p. 13). At this point there
is a footnote:
Thus it is said to have been clans of a still markedly Stoorish
strain that first moved on west again from Bree and colonized
the Shire, attracted originally to the riverbanks of the Baran-
duin. In Bilbo's time the inhabitants of the Marish in the East
Farthing, and also of Buckland, still showed Stoorish charac-
teristics. Yet even there the chief families, notably the Brandy-
bucks, had a strong Fallohidish strain in their make-up.
(On this see the commentary on $20.)
Before F 2 was written the account of the Harfoots, Stoors, and
Fallohides was removed to stand in the Prologue, where at its first
appearance it had almost word for word its form in the published
work (see p. 10).
From this point F 1 continues as the basis for the F 2 version
from $$21 ff.
11. For this paragraph F 1 reads as follows:
More recent enquiries have failed, it is true, to find any trace
of a special Hobbit language, but they do suggest that Westnish
[> Westron] was not in fact the oldest language spoken by this
people. The very earliest glimpses of Hobbits to be caught,
either in their own legends or those of their neighbours, show
them rather to have at that time spoken the language of Men
in the higher vale of Anduin, roughly between the Carrock and
the Gladden Fields.
The footnote here in F 1 corresponds in subject to that in F 2 at
the end of $23, and reads:
If Gandalf's theory is correct the people of Gollum must have
been a late-lingering group of Stoors in the neighbourhood of
the Gladden. And it may be that the memories of Smeagol
provide one of the earliest glimpses of Hobbitry that we have.
It may be noted therefore that Deagol and Smeagol are both
words in the languages of Anduin-vale.
12. The footnote here in F 1 (see note 11) reads:
Of course, since the Common Speech was itself derived from
a related speech, it may sometimes have happened that the
Hobbits preserved in use a word that had once been more
widely current in Westnish [> Westron].
13. F 1 has here: 'and to the name of the Dragon Smaug (if that is a
name given to him by the northern men of Dale, as seems likely).'
14. F 1 does not have the reference to the Hobbit month-names, but
introduces a paragraph that was not taken up here in F 2 (cf. $28,
which appears also in F 1).
Hobbits therefore appear from their linguistic history to
have had in early times a special aptitude for adopting
language from their neighbours, and in no other point is this
better illustrated than in their giving of names. They had of
course many names of their own invention - usually short and
often comic in sound (to us and to Hobbits) - but from very
early times they had also in traditional use a wealth of other
names drawn not from the language of daily use but from their
legends and histories and fictitious tales which dealt by no
means solely with their own heroes and adventures, but with
Elves and Men and Dwarves and even giants.
15. This is a reference to the conclusion of the text, which is omitted
in this book (see note 42).
16. The heading On Translation is absent in F 1.
17. For the reference of the footnote at this point see note 15. In F 1
the footnote reads: 'A note on the spelling and intended pronun-
ciation of the Elvish words and names will be found at the begin-
ning of the Index.'
18. In a draft of this passage in F 1 the Westron name of Imladris was
Karbandul.
19. The footnote to the name Dwarrowdelf differs somewhat in F 1.
The Common Speech name of Moria was Kubalnarga (changed
to Kubalnargia), translated as Dwarrowdelf 'since in Bilbo's time
the word kubal (related to kubu "delve") was obsolete in ordi-
nary speech, and narga [> nargia] contained a plural [> deriva-
tive) form of narag "dwarf" that had long disappeared from use.
Dwarrows is what our older dwergas would have become if the
singular dwarf from older dwerh had not replaced it, long ago.'
Subsequently the C.S. name was changed in F 1 to Satun-nargia,
and finally to Phurun-nargia (with corresponding changes of
kubal, kubu to phurun, phur-).
20. The whole of the discussion in $41 of the name Suza of the Shire
and the reason for the use of 'Farthing' is lacking in F 1; but after
the reference to English wich, bold, bottle there is a footnote
which was not taken up in F 2:
In one case I have coined a word: smial (or smile if you prefer
it so). The Hobbits used a peculiar word of their own, gluva
[written later nearby: Rohan globa], for 'an inhabited hole'. I
would have left it unchanged but it would have looked out-
landish in an English context. Accordingly I have used smial,
since the ancient English smygel 'a hole to creep in' would, had
it survived or been adopted by latterday Hobbits, have now
had some such form.
21. In F 1 the Hobbit name for 'Hornblower' was Rhasputal,
changed to Rasputa as in F 2.
22. In F 1 my father first wrote Tuk but emended it to Tuca; in F 2
he wrote Tuca, but then erased the final -a.
23. In F 1 the adjective tuca was described as 'a Fallohide word
meaning "great" ', corrected to the reading of F 2.
24. The footnote at this point concerning the masculine ending -a is
absent in F 1.
25. The footnote concerning the 'to us rather ridiculous subnames or
titles' of the heads of the Brandybuck clan is absent in F 1. See the
commentary on $45.
26. Hamanullas: in F 1 the name was Amanullith, subsequently
changed to Hamanulli.
27. In F 1 the name was Tuk, later corrected to Tuca, as previously
(see note 22).
28. The names in F 1 were Shuran-kaphir and Zarkaphir, changed to
Assargamba and Zaragamba as in F 2.
29. F 1 has the same note, but in addition it is said that Bophan was
'of Harfoot origin',-and also that 'to Hobbits in general Bophan
was as devoid of meaning as Boffin today.'
30. In F 1 the account of Gamgee was the same, but the underlying
names were different: the Hobbit name was Charbushi, derived
from the place-name Charb(b)ash; the Common Speech word
meaning 'game' was charab; and the place-name ending was
-bash, -bas. These forms were then corrected to those in F 2.
Charbash appears again in the note on Cotton in F 1.
31. In F 1 the Shire word for 'Hobbit' was kubud and the obsolete
Common Speech word from which it was derived was kubud(u)r
'hole-dweller'; Theoden's word was kugbadru. These forms were
then changed: the Shire word became cubut (plural cubudil),
derived from obsolete C.S. cubadul, and Theoden's word
cugbadul.
In F 2 cubuc and the associated words and forms were all first
written cu-, changed to cu-. The Common Speech and Rohan
forms were a good deal altered in the text and I have given only
those finally adopted: thus the plural of cubuc was first cubuga
and then cubugen, the obsolete C.S. word was cubugl(a), and the
Rohan word was cugbagul (again in $56).
32. In F 1 it is said that 'Bilbo is the actual Hobbit name': see note
24.
33. In F 1 the name was written Mauro before being changed to
Maura.
34. The note in F 1 on the true name of Meriadoc is the same, but
with the spellings Khilimanzar, Khilik.
35. The note on Peregrin (Pippin) read in F 1, before emendation:
The Hobbit name is Rabanul. This is not a name of C.S. form;
it is said to be [Fallohide >] a Harfoot name; but since it is also
said to mean 'traveller', and was in any case the name of a
legendary rover and wanderer, I have chosen Peregrin to rep-
resent it. Of Peregrin, Pippin is I suppose a not impossible pet-
form, though it is not so close to Peregrin as Rubul is to
Rubanul. But rubul is in C.S. the name of a kind of small apple.
36. The original discussion of the name Sam in F 2 was rejected and
replaced. I give the second form, since it scarcely differs from the
first except in clarity. In F 1 the same statement was made, but the
linguistic elements were different. His real name was Bolnoth;
the common Shire-name (Ban in F 2) was Bol, held to be an
abbreviation of Bolagar; the prefix meaning 'half-, almost' was
bol-; and the word in the Common Speech meaning 'wise' (zir(a)
in F 2) was noth. These were changed to the forms in F 2, but
with Bannatho for Bannatha (see note 24).
37. For Tomacca F 1 has Tomak (and k for c in other names in this
passage, as throughout), and for Arambil has Shambil; Farmer
Cotton's full name is Tomakli Lothron, changed subsequently to
Tomacci.
38. In F 1 Butterbur's real name was Barabush Zilibraph, the first
name meaning (like Barabatta in F 2) 'quick-talker, babbler',
shortened to Barabli, and the second a compound of zilib 'butter'
and raph(a) a 'burr'. This latter was changed to Zilbarapha, the
form first written in F 2. At the end of the note F 1 has: 'the nick-
name which the landlord of "The Pony" had so long borne that
Frodo had never heard his true given-name'.
With the discussion of Butterbur the text F 1 ends, but my
father added the following in pencil later:
A final note on the other languages. Now since the language of
Rohann and of Dale were akin, that of Rohann closely akin in
origin to the Common Speech, it seemed plain that having
converted all C.S. into English the more northerly (archaic
and less blended) tongues must be represented in the same way.
The language of Men in Dale has thus been given (so far as its
names show) a Norse cast; and since as has been said the
Dwarves adapt their names and speech to those of Men among
whom they live, all the Dwarves of the North have names of
this Northern type (in fact the actual names of Dwarves in
Norse). The Rohirrim are therefore appropriately represented
by speaking a tongue resembling ancient English. It will thus
be noted that for the archaic Rohan cugbadul in relation to
Hobbit cubut [see note 31] I have ..... [? ancient] English
holbytla in relation to hobbit.
From here to the end of the text (so far as it is given here, see
note 42) F 2 exists in two forms, both consisting of two sides of
a single manuscript page: the second form is a fair copy of the
first, and follows it very closely, with for the most part only very
minor alterations of wording. I give here the second version, with
a couple of differences of form recorded in the following notes.
39. In the first form of the F 2 text the real word in Rohan
corresponding to Theoden is turan, where the second form has
turac-.
40. The first form had tunga where the second has tung.
41. These are forms of the same prehistoric stem, with differing
vowels (smeag being the ancient English form, smaug the Scan-
dinavian, while smygel is an English development of the stem
smug).
42. The remaining eight pages of the F 2 manuscript are taken up
with an account of pronunciation, with sections on consonants,
vowels, and accent, which was subsequently removed to become
(in much developed form) the first part of Appendix E. I give here
only the brief preface to this account.
In transliterating words and names from the ancient languages
that appear in the Red Book I have attempted to use modern
letters in a way as agreeable to modern English eyes as could
be combined with reasonable accuracy. Also I have used them
as far as possible with the same value in all the languages
concerned. Fortunately the languages of the Westlands of the
period were fairly euphonious (by European standards) and
simple in phonetic structure, and no very rare or difficult
sounds appear to have occurred in them.
Hobbit names, as has been explained, have all been con-
verted into English forms and equivalents and can be pro-
nounced accordingly. Thus Celador Bolger has c as in cellar,
and g as in bulge. But in the alien languages the following
points may be observed by those who are interested in such
matters.
Noldorin appears, of course, for Sindarin throughout (see the
commentary on $$5, 18). For Celador Bolger, who does not
appear in The Lord of the Rings, see pp. 94, 96.
COMMENTARY.
$2. So far as I have been able to discover, my father never used the
adjective 'Mannish', whether of language or tradition, before its
occurrence in this work. The change of 'Human' to 'Mannish' in
F 1 (see note 2 above) therefore marks the entry of this term.
$3. The use of the term Lembi 'Lingerers', for those of the Eldar who
'remained behind in the north-west of Middle-earth', is a clear in-
dication of date, substantiating the conclusion already reached that
this earliest version of Appendix F was at any rate written before the
middle of 1950 (see p. 28 and note 1). In the long and extremely
complex history of the classification of the divisions of the Elvish
peoples and their names, this represents the stage reached in the
Quenta Silmarillion $29 (V.215), where by a change that can be
dated to November 1937 the old term Lembi 'Lingerers' became the
name for those of the Eldar who were 'lost upon the long road' and
never crossed the Great Sea (V.215, 219). Thus while this earliest
version of Appendix F certainly belongs to the time when the end of
the actual narrauve of The Lord of the Rings had been reached, it
equally clearly preceded the new work on the legends of the First
Age which included (as well as the Annals of Aman, the Grey
Annals, and many other works) the revision of the Quenta
Silmarillion: for in that revision the term Lembi was first changed to
Lemberi and then removed, and the name Sindar emerged (for a
detailed account see X.163-4, 169 - 71). As noted in X.91, the name
Sindar does not occur in The Lord of the Rings apart from the
Appendices.
$4. The name Lindar had been replaced by Vanyar when the Annals
of Aman and the Grey Annals were written.
The statement here concerning Quenya, the 'Elven-latin' orig-
inally deriving from the language of the Lindar, echoes that in the
Lhammas or 'Account of Tongues' of the 1930s (see V.172; 193,
195). It may be noted that the expression 'Elven-latin' survived in
the published form of Appendix F (RK p. 406): '[Quenya] was
no longer a birth-tongue, but had become, as it were, an "Elven-
latin" ...'.
$5. The name Quenta Noldorion, for Quenta Silmarillion, seems to
be unique in this place (where it occurs in both texts). - Nothing is
said in this work of the adoption of Sindarin (or as it is called here,
Lemberin) by the Exiled Noldor: this fundamental development
(which first appears in the earliest version of the 'linguistic excursus'
in the Grey Annals, XI.20-1) had not yet emerged (see further under
$18 below). But the idea found in the earlier forms of that 'excur-
sus' (XI.21, 25, 27) that the two languages, Noldorin and Sindarin,
changed in similar ways and 'drew together' appears in the footnote
to $5.
$7. In the list of Alterations in last revision 1951 (see X.7), often
referred to, occurs 'Atani N[oldorin] Edain = Western Men or
Fathers of Men'. It is possible that the form in F 1, Atanni, replac-
ing Atanatari (note 3 above), was the earliest occurrence of the
name.
In the sentence 'In that war three houses of the Fathers of Men
aided the Elves ...' the word 'the' is not casually absent before 'three
houses': cf. $10, 'the native tongue of the Fathers of Men themselves
before those of the Three Houses passed over the Sea.'
The statement concerning the loss of the original language of the
Atani shows a curious uncertainty (see note 4 above): from the orig-
inal version in F 1, 'their chieftains learned the Noldorin speech,
and some indeed forsook their own tongue', revised to the form in
F 2 'the people of these houses learned the Noldorin speech, and for-
sook their own tongue', which was then altered to 'the lords of these
houses learned the Noldorin speech'. That my father should have
entertained at all at this time the idea that the original language of
the Atani (of the Three Houses) was wholly lost is remarkable. In
this connection it is interesting to compare what he wrote in draft-
ing for the chapter Faramir (later The Window on the West), which
can be dated precisely to May 1944 (VIII.144). Here, in a passage
concerning the Common Speech which was only removed from the
chapter at a late stage (see VIII.162), Faramir had said: Some there
are of Gondor who have dealings with the Elves ... One great
advantage we have: we speak an elvish speech, or one so near akin
that we can in part understand them and they us.' At this Sam
exclaimed: 'But you speak the ordinary language! Same as us,
though a bit old-fashioned like, if you'll pardon my saying it.' Then
Faramir replied (VIII.159 - 60):
'Of course we do. For that is our own tongue which we perhaps
preserve better than you do far in the North. The Common
Tongue, as some call it, is derived from the Numenoreans, being
but a form changed by time of that speech which the Fathers of
the Three Houses [struck out: Hador and Haleth and Beor] spoke
of old. This language it is that has spread through the western
world amongst all folk and creatures that use words, to some only
a second tongue for use in intercourse with strangers, to some the
only tongue they know. But this is not an Elvish speech in my
meaning. All speech of men in this world is Elvish in descent; but
only if one go back to the beginnings. What I meant was so: [the
lords >] many men of the Three Houses long ago gave up man-
speech and spoke the tongue of their friends the Noldor or
Gnomes: a high-elvish tongue [struck out: akin to but changed
from the Ancient Elvish of Elvenhome]. And always the lords of
Numenor knew that tongue and used it among themselves. And
so still do we among ourselves ...
See further under $9 below.
$9. It is an extraordinary feature of this account that there is no
suggestion that the Numenoreans retained their own Mannish
language, and it is indeed expressly stated here that 'The language
of the Dunedain was thus the Elvish Noldorin'. This is the expla-
nation of the statement discussed under $7 that the Men of the
Three Houses learned Noldorin and abandoned their ancestral
tongue (as has been mentioned already in note 4 above, the emen-
dation to F 2, whereby it was reduced to 'the lords of these houses
learned the Noldorin speech', was made at the same time as the
rough alterations of the text here and in $13 whereby Adunaic was
introduced as the language of Numenor).
I am altogether at a loss to account for this, in view of Faramir's
disquisition to Sam cited under $7. Moreover, in the anomalous
'Foreword' that I have called F' my father had said (p. 21, 58):
'Now those languages of Men that are here met with were related
to the Common Speech; for the Men of the North and West were
akin in the beginning to the Men of Westernesse that came back
over the Sea; and the Common Speech was indeed made by the
blending of the speech of Men of Middle-earth with the tongues of
the kings from over the Sea.' This is not very clearly expressed, but
the implication seems clear that the Numenorean language that
entered into the Common Speech was a Mannish and not an Elvish
tongue. One seems to be driven to the explanation that my father
when writing the present account had actually shifted away from
his view that the Mannish language of the Three Houses was the
common speech of Numenor; yet what does that imply of all his
work on Adunaic and The Drouwing of Anadune in 1946?
In the footnote to $9 the tenth king of the Northern Line is named
Earendil, not as in Appendix A (RK pp. 318, 320) Earendur; see
p. 189.
It was undoubtedly here that the name Westron arose (apparently
devised by my father on the analogy of the old form southron,
itself an alteration of southern); the F 1 text as originally written
had Westnish throughout (note 6 above). Westron occurs only once
in the actual narrative of The Lord of the Rings, in the chapter
Lothlorien, where Legolas says 'this is how it runs in the Westron
Speech' (FR p. 353), and this was a late change from 'the Common
Speech', made to the typescript following the fair copy manuscript:
see VII.223 and 235 with note 48.
$10. In Faramir's account (see under $7) the Common Speech was
expressly said to be 'derived from the Numenoreans': changed by
time, it was nonetheless directly descended from 'that speech which
the Fathers of the Three Houses spoke of old'. In fact, in corrections
made to the completed manuscript of that chapter, the conception
was changed to the extent that Faramir now says: 'The Common
Tongue, as some call it, is derived from the Numenoreans; for the
Numenoreans coming to the shores of these lands took the rude
tongue of the men that they here found and whom they ruled, and
they enriched it, and it spread hence through the Western world';
and he also says that 'in intercourse with other folk we use the Com-
mon Speech which we made for that purpose' (VIII.162). Of this I
said (ibid.): 'Here the idea that the Common Speech was derived
from "that speech which the Fathers of the Three Houses spoke of
old" is denied'; but by 'the rude tongue of the men that they here
found' Faramir may have meant language that in the course of
millennia had become greatly altered and impoverished, not that it
bore no ancestral kinship to that of the Numenoreans.
In Appendix F as published the section Of Men (RK p. 406)
begins: 'The Westron was a Mannish speech, though enriched and
softened under Elvish influence. It was in origin the language
of those whom the Eldar called the Atani or Edain, "Fathers of
Men"...' And further on in this section my father wrote of the great
Numenorean haven of Pelargir: 'There Adunaic was spoken, and
mingled with many words of the languages of lesser men it became
a Common Speech that spread thence along the coasts ...'
All these conceptions differ somewhat among themselves, but as
is often the case when comparing varying texts of my father's one
may feel unsure whether the differences do not lie more in differing
emphasis than in real contradiction. In the present text, however, it
is perfectly clear that the Common Speech was in origin one form of
the skein of Mannish speech that extended from the North (Dale,
Esgaroth, and the old lands of the Rohirrim) southward down the
vales of Anduin (see $23); that this particular form was centred on
the Numenorean haven of Pelargir ($10); and that it was for this
reason much influenced by the Numenorean language - but that
language was the Elvish Noldorin as it had evolved in Numenor.
$14. The statement (before revision) that the Dunlendings had for-
gotten their own tongue and used only the Westron conflicts with
the passage in the chapter Helm's Deep, where the Men of Dunland
cried out against the Rohirrim in their ancient speech, interpreted to
Aragorn and Eomer by Gamling the Old (see VIII.21). In the revised
form of the paragraph the Dunland tongue is said to have been
'wholly unlike the Westron, and was descended, as it seems, from
some other Mannish tongue, not akin to that of the Atani, Fathers
of Men'; cf. Appendix F (RK p. 407): 'Wholly alien was the speech
of the Wild Men of Druadan Forest. Alien, too, or only remotely
akin, was the language of the Dunlendings.' In an earlier form of
Faramir's exposition cited under $7 he said that there was a 'remote
kinship' between the Common Speech and 'the tongues of Rohan
and of Dale and of Westfold and Dunland and other places',
VIII.159.
$16. 'The Orcs had a language of their own, devised for them by the
Dark Lord of old': in view of what is said in $7, 'the Eldar were at
that time engaged in a ceaseless war with the Dark Lord of that Age,
one greater far than Sauron', this may seem to refer to Morgoth; but
cf. Appendix F (RK p. 409), 'It is said that the Black Speech was
devised by Sauron in the Dark Years'.
$18. The entire conception of the relations of the Elvish languages in
Middle-earth at the end of the Third Age as presented here was of
course fundamentally altered by the emergence of the idea that the
Exiled Noldor of the First Age adopted Sindarin, the (Telerian)
language of the Eldar who remained in Middle-earth. Thus the
language of the Elves dwelling west of the Misty Mountains is here
Noldorin (see under $5 above), while the Lemberin (i.e. Sindarin) of
Middle-earth is found among the Elves of Northern Mirkwood
and Lorien. At the beginning of $19 names such as Lorien, Caras
Galadon, Amroth, Nimrodel are cited as examples of Lemberin;
whereas in Appendix F (RK p. 405, footnote) they are cited as
'probably of Silvan origin', in contrast to Sindarin, the language
spoken in Lorien at the end of the Third Age. - With the present
passage cf. that in the text F', p. 20, $7.
$20. It has been seen (note 10 above) that it was in the text F 1 that
the threefold division of the Hobbits into Harfoots, Stoors, and
Fallohides entered, whence it was removed, before F 2 was written,
to stand in the Prologue. In the actual narrative of The Lord of the
Rings there is no reference to Harfoots or Fallohides, but the Stoors
are named once, in the chapter The Shadow of the Past, where Gan-
dalf spoke of Gollum's family. The introduction of the name was
made at a very late stage in the evolution of the chapter, when the
passage read (cf. the oldest version of the text, VI.78): 'I guess they
were of hobbit-kind; or akin to the fathers of the fathers of the
hobbits, though they loved the River, and often swam in it, or made
little boats of reeds'; this was altered to the final text (FR p. 62) by
omitting the word 'or' in 'or akin', and by changing 'hobbits' to
'Stoors' and 'though they loved' to 'for they loved'.
$22. My father was writing of Hobbits as if they were still to be
found, as he did in the published Prologue ('Hobbits are an unob-
trusive but very ancient people, more numerous formerly than they
are today', &c., though altering present tense to past tense in one
passage in the Second Edition, p. 17, note 13). Here indeed he
attributed at least to some of them a lively interest in linguistic
history.
$$22-3. In the footnotes to these paragraphs the more complex
history of the Stoors can be seen evolving. In the footnote in F 1
(note 11 above) corresponding to that to $23 in F 2, concerning
Gandalf's opinion about Gollum's origin, it is said that his people
'must have been a late-lingering group of Stoors in the neighbour-
hood of the Gladden' (i.e. after the Stoors as a whole had crossed
the Misty Mountains into Eriador). In the footnote in F 2 (belong-
ing with the writing of the manuscript) my father suggested rather
that they were 'a family or small clan' of Stoors who had gone back
east over the Mountains, a return to Wilderland that (he said) was
evidenced in Hobbit legends, on account of the hard life and hard
lands that they found in eastern Eriador.
Later, there entered the story that many Stoors remained in the
lands between Tharbad and the borders of Dunland: this was an
addition to the Prologue (FR p. 12) made when the text was close
to its final form (cf. p. 11), and no doubt the footnote to $22 was
added at the same time.
In Appendix A (RK p. 321) the return to Wilderland by some of
the Stoors is directly associated with the invasion of Arnor by
Angmar in Third Age 1409:
It was at this time that the Stoors that had dwelt in the Angle
(between Hoarwell and Loudwater) fled west and south, because
of the wars, and the dread of Angmar, and because the land and
clime of Eriador, especially in the east, worsened and became
unfriendly. Some returned to Wilderland, and dwelt beside the
Gladden, becoming a riverside people of fishers.
These Stoors of the Angle who returned to Wilderland are dis-
tinguished from those who dwelt further south and acquired a
speech similar to that of the people of Dunland: see the section Of
Hobbits in Appendix F, RK p. 408 and footnote.
$25. The name Brandywine emerged very early in the writing of The
Lord of the Rings (VI.29-30 and note 5), but the Elvish name first
appeared in the narrative in work on the chapter Flight to the Ford
(VII.61; FR p. 222), where Glorfindel, in a rejected draft, spoke of
'the Branduin (which you have turned into Brandywine)' (the word
'have' was erroneously omitted in the text printed). In F 1, and
again at first in F 2, my father repeated this: 'older names, of Elvish
or forgotten Mannish origin, they often translated ... or twisted into
a familiar shape (as Elvish Baranduin "brown river" to Brandy-
wine).' But in revision to F 2 he rejected this explanation, saying
that the Elvish name of the river was in fact Malevarn ('golden-
brown'), transformed in the Hobbits' speech to Malvern, but that
this was then replaced by Brandywine - this being exceptional, since
it bore no relation in form to the Elvish name. This idea he also
rejected, and in the final form of $25 went back to the original
explanation of Brandywine, that it was a characteristic Hobbit
alteration of Elvish Baranduin.
In the passage of Flight to the Ford referred to above the name of
the river appears in the manuscript as Branduin, changed to Baran-
duin, and then to Malevarn (VII.66, note 36). It is surprising at first
sight to see that Malevarn survived into the final typescript of the
chapter, that sent to the printer, where my father corrected it to
Baranduin; but the explanation is evidently that this typescript
had been made a long time before. Glorfindel's use of Baranduin or
Malevarn is in fact the only occurrence of the Elvish name of the
river in the narrative of The Lord of the Rings.
$27. In Appendix D (RK p. 389) Yellowskin is called 'the Yearbook
of Tuckborough'.
$37. It is often impossible to be sure of my father's intention in the
usage of 'thou, thee' and 'you' forms of address: when writing
rapidly he was very inconsistent, and in more careful manuscripts
he often wavered in his decision on this insoluble question (if the
distinction is to be represented at all). In the case of the chapter The
Steward and the King, referred to here, the first manuscript (see
IX.54) is a very rapidly written draft from which no conclusion can
be drawn; while in the second manuscript, a good clear text, he
decided while in the course of writing the dialogue between Faramir
and Eowyn against showing the distinction at all. The 'sudden
change' to which he referred here (but in F 1 he wrote only of 'the
intrusion of thou, thee into the dialogue') is possibly to be seen in
their first meeting in the garden of the Houses of Healing, where
Faramir says (RK p. 238): 'Then, Eowyn of Rohan, I say to you
that you are beautiful', but at the end of his speech changes to the
'familiar' form, 'But thou and I have both passed under the wings of
the Shadow' (whereas Eowyn continues to use 'you'). In the follow-
ing meetings, in this text, Faramir uses the 'familiar' forms, but
Eowyn does not do so until the last ('Dost thou not know?', RK
p. 242); and soon after this point my father went back over what he
had written and changed every 'thou' and 'thee' to 'you'. In the third
manuscript (preceding the final typescript) there is no trace of the
'familiar' form.
I record these details because they are significant of the (relative)
date of the present text, showing very clearly that when he wrote
this earliest form of what would become Appendix F he had not yet
completed the second manuscript of this chapter.
'The thee used by Sam Gamgee to Rose at the end of the book'
refers to the end of the Epilogue (IX.118): 'I did not think I should
ever see thee again'. At this stage only the first version of the
Epilogue was in being (though these words are used in both ver-
sions): see IX.129, 132.
On a loose page associated with my father's later work on this
Appendix my father wrote very rapidly:
Where thou, thee, thy appears it is used mainly to mark a use of
the familiar form where that was not usual. For instance its use
by Denethor in his last madness to Gandalf, and by the Messen-
ger of Sauron, was in both cases intended to be contemptuous.
But elsewhere it is occasionally used to indicate a deliberate
change to a form of affection or endearment.
The passages referred to are RK pp. 128-30 and p. 165; in
Denethor's speeches to Gandalf there are some occurrences of 'you'
that were not corrected.
$39. For Westron Carbandur (F 1 at first Karbandul, note 18)
Appendix F has Kamingul (RK p. 412).
$41. With the Noldorin word lhann, said here to be the equivalent
'of Westron suza as used in Gondor for the divisions of the realm, cf.
the Etymologies, V.367, stem LAD, where Noldorin lhand, lhann
'wide' is cited, and also the region Lhothland, Lhothlann, east of
Dorthonion (see XI.60, 128).
$42. The Westron name Rasputa 'Hornblower' is only recorded
here (F 1 Rhasputal, note 21 above). Since it is said ($13) that the
Common Speech was 'much enriched with words drawn from the
language of the Dunedain, which was ... a form of the Elvish
Noldorin', it is perhaps worth noting that the stem RAS in the
Etymologies (V.383) yields Quenya rasse, Noldorin rhaes 'horn',
with citation of Caradras. - In Appendix F (RK p. 413) the name
Tuk is said to be an old name 'of forgotten meaning'.
$43. For the name Porro, not found in The Lord of the Rings, see pp.
87-8, 92.
$45. The 'classical' titles of the heads of the Brandybuck family given
in the second footnote to this paragraph do not appear in The Lord
of the Rings, but see pp. 102 - 3. Cf. Appendix F (RK p. 413): 'Names
of classical origin have rarely been used; for the nearest equivalents
to Latin and Greek in Shire-lore were the Elvish tongues, and these
the Hobbits seldom used in nomenclature. Few of them at any time
knew the "languages of the kings", as they called them.'
$46. Apart from the opening sentence nothing of this paragraph
remained in Appendix F, and Lobelia Sackville-Baggins' true name
Hamanullas was lost.
$47. Much information is given here on Hobbit family-names that
was subsequently lost, notably the true Westron name of Baggins
and its supposed etymology; other names (Brandybuck, Cotton,
Gamgee), discussed in the notes that conclude Appendix F, differ in
details of the forms. On the name Gamgee see the references in the
index to Letters, and especially the letter to Naomi Mitchison of 25
April 1954 (no.144, near the end), which is closely related to what
is said here and in Appendix F.
$48. In the note at the end of Appendix F it is said that the word for
'Hobbit' in use in the Shire was kuduk, and that Theoden used the
form kud-dukan 'hole-dweller' when he met Merry and Pippin at
Isengard, which in the narrative (TT p. 163) is 'translated' by
Holbytla(n), though no rendering of this given. In the present
passage, both in F 1 (see note 31) and in F 2, the meaning 'hole-
dweller' is given for holbytla and for the real Westron and Rohan
words (cf. also p. 10). In view of the etymology of bytla (bylta), for
which see VII.424, VIII.44, one would expect 'hole-builder', but
this only occurs in fact at an earlier point in Appendix F (RK
p. 408): the word hobbit seems to be 'a worn-down form of a word
preserved more fully in Rohan: holbytla "hole-builder" ' (see further
p. 83, note 7).
My father's remarks in the footnote to this paragraph on his asso-
ciation of the words 'hobbit' and 'rabbit' are notable.
$49. In Appendix F (RK p. 414) Meriadoc's true name was Kalimac,
shortened Kali; but nothing is said of the true names of Frodo or
Peregrin.
$50. In the chapter The Road to Isengard the originator of pipe-weed
in the Shire was first named Elias Tobiasson, and then Tobias
Smygrave, before Tobias Hornblower emerged (VIII.36-7). Tobias
remained to a late stage in the development of the chapter before he
was renamed Tobold, though it is seen from the present text that my
father for a time retained Tobias while asserting that the name
(pronounced Tobias) was not in fact a 'translation' of Hebraic
origin at all.
Bildad (Bolger) is not found in The Lord of the Rings (but see pp.
94, 96); while the abbreviated names Tom and Mat are differently
explained in Appendix F.
$51. As with Tobias Hornblower, my father retained Barnabas
Butterbur, despite what he had written in $50, but accounted for it
on the grounds that Butterbur was not a Hobbit but a Man of Bree.
In Appendix F all discussion of the name of the landlord of The
Prancing Pony was lost. The change of Barnabas to Barliman was
made in very late revisions to the text of The Lord of the Rings (cf.
IX.78).
$58. These remarks on the history of the Hobbits' name of the
Baranduin (see also $$25, 47) were further altered in the final note
at the end of Appendix F.
This is the most detailed account that my father wrote of his elaborate
and distinctive fiction of translation, of transposition and substitution.
One may wonder when or by what stages it emerged; but I think that
this is probably unknowable: the evidences are very slight, and in such
matters he left none of those discussions, records of internal debate,
that sometimes greatly assisted in the understanding of the develop-
ment of the narrative. It seems to me in any case most probable that
the idea evolved gradually, as the history, linguistic and other, was con-
solidated and became increasingly coherent.
Central to the 'fiction of authenticity' is of course the Common
Speech. I concluded that this was first named in the Lord of the Rings
papers in the chapter Lothlorien (dating from the beginning of the
1940s): see VII.223, 239. In the second of these passages my father
wrote that the speech of the wood-elves of Lorien was 'not that of the
western elves which was in those days used as a common speech
among many folk'. In a note of the same period (VII.277) he said that
'Since Aragorn is a man and the common speech (especially of mor-
tals) is represented by English, then he must not have an Elvish name';
and in another note (VII.424), one of a collection of jottings on a page
that bears the date 9 February 1942 (at which time he was working on
the opening chapters of what became The Two Towers) he wrote:
Language of Shire = modern English
Language of Dale = Norse (used by Dwarves of that region)
Language of Rohan = Old English
'Modern English' is lingua franca spoken by all people (except a few
secluded folk like Lorien) - but little and ill by orcs.
In this, 'Language of Dale = Norse (used by Dwarves of that region)'
shows plainly that a major obstacle, perhaps the chief obstacle, to a
coherent 'authentication' had by this time been resolved. When my
father wrote The Hobbit he had of course no notion that the Old
Norse names of the Dwarves required any explanation, within the
terms of the story: those were their names, and that was all there was
to it. As he said in a letter of December 1937, cited in the Foreword to
The Return of the Shadow (p. 7): 'I don't much approve of The Hobbit
myself, preferring my own mythology (which is just touched on) with
its consistent nomenclature ... and organized history, to this rabble of
Eddaic-named dwarves out of Voluspa ...' But now this inescapable
Norse element had to be accounted for; and from that 'rabble of
Eddaic-named dwarves out of Voluspa the conception emerged that
the Dwarves had 'outer names' derived from the tongues of Men with
whom they had dealings, concealing their true names which they kept
altogether secret. And this was very evidently an important com-
ponent in the theory of the transposition of languages: for the
Dwarves had Norse names because they lived among Men who were
represented in The Lord of the Rings as speaking Norse. It may not be
too far-fetched, I think, to suppose that (together with the idea of
the Common Speech) those Dwarf-names in The Hobbit provided the
starting-point for the whole structure of the Mannish languages in
Middle-earth, as expounded in the present text.
My father asserted ($53) that he had represented the tongue of the
Rohirrim as Old English because their real language stood in a relation
to the Common Speech somewhat analogous to that of Old English
and Modern English. This is perhaps difficult to accept: one may feel
that the impulse that produced the Riders of Rohan and the Golden
Hall was more profound, and that my father's statement should be
viewed as an aspect of the fiction of authenticity -, for the idea of
'translation' had a further fictional dimension in its presentation as a
conception established from the outset - which in the case of the
Dwarf-names (and the Hobbit-names) it was most assuredly not.
On the other hand, he knew very soon that the Rohirrim were orig-
inally Men of the North: in a note made at the time when his work on
the chapter The Riders of Rohan was scarcely begun (VII.390) he
wrote:
Rohiroth are relations of Woodmen and Beornings, old Men of the
North. But they speak Gnomish - tongue of Numenor and Ondor,
as well as [?common] tongue.
Taken with 'Language of Rohan = Old English' among the equations
in the note cited above, from about the same time, it may be better not
to force the distinction, but to say rather that the emergent 'trans-
positional' idea (Modern English - Old English - Old Norse) may well
have played a part in my father's vision of Rohan.
In the present text it can be seen that as he penetrated more deeply
into the logic of the theory he came up against complexities that were
difficult to manage. For example, it seems clear that when he wrote in
$25. that the Hobbits had 'twisted into a familiar shape' the Elvish
name Baranduin, making out of it Brandywine, he had not taken into
account the fact that the Hobbits would have had no such word as
'Brandywine' (whether or not they knew of brandy, $58). This realis-
ation led to his avowal in $56: 'This translation had a disadvantage
which I did not foresee. The "linguistic notes" on the origin of pecu-
liar Hobbit words had also to be "translated" '; and in $58 he is seen
ingeniously introducing the necessary 'third term' into the history of
Brandywine: the 'picturesque perversion' of the river-name Baranduin
by the Hobbits was to their real word Branduhim, which meant in
their Westron 'foaming beer'. He could still say that Brandywine was
'a very possible "corruption" of Baranduin',,because Baranduin being
an Elvish name was not translated; thus Brandywine must both
'imitate' the Hobbit word Branduhim, and at the same time stand in
Modern English as a corruption of Baranduin.
It will be seen shortly that in the text of this Appendix next follow-
ing my father moved sharply away from F 2, and removed almost all
exemplification of true Westron names. It may be that at that stage he
had come to think that the subtleties demanded by so close an exam-
ination of the 'theory' were unsuitable to the purpose; on the other
hand it seems possible that mere considerations of length were the
cause.
Note on an unpublished letter.
A long letter of my father's was sent for sale at auction on 4 May 1995
at Sotheby's in London. This letter he wrote on 3 August 1943, during
the long pause in the writing of The Lord of the Rings (between the
end of Book Three and the beginning of Book Four) that lasted from
about the end of 1942 to the beginning of April 1944 (VIII.77-8). It
was addressed to two girls named Leila Keene and Pat Kirke, and was
largely concerned to answer their questions about the runes in The
Hobbit; but in the present connection it contains an interesting
passage on the Common Speech. My father made some brief remarks
on the problem of the representation of the languages actually spoken
in those days, and continued:
In some ways it was not too difficult. In Bilbo's time there was a
language very widely used all over the West (the Western parts of the
Great Lands of those days). It was a sort of lingua-franca, made up
of all sorts of languages, but the Elvish language (of the North West)
for the most part. It was called the Western language or Common
Speech; and in Bilbo's time had already passed eastward over the
Misty Mountains and reached Lake Town, and Beorn, and even
Smaug (dragons were ready linguists in all ages)....
If hobbits ever had any special language of their own, they had
given it up. They spoke the Common Speech only and every
day (unless they learned other languages, which was very seldom).
The most notable point in this is the description of the composition of
the Common Speech: 'a sort of lingua-franca, made up of all sorts
of languages, but the Elvish language (of the North West) for the most
part.' Allowance should perhaps be made for the nature of the letter
(my father was not, obviously, writing a precise statement); but it cer-
tainly seems that as late as 1943, when half of The Lord of the Rings
had been written, he had as yet no conception of the origin of the
Common Speech in a form of Mannish language of the west of
Middle-earth, and that Faramir's account of the matter (see p. 63),
written nine months later, had not emerged. It may be that what he
said in this letter ('the Elvish language (of the North West) for the
most part') is to be associated with what he had written in the chapter
Lothlorien, where he said (VII.239) that the language of 'the western
elves' 'was in those days used as a common speech among many folk.'
He also referred in this letter to the adoption by the Dwarves of the
Lonely Mountain of the language of the Men of Dale, in which they
gave themselves names, keeping their true names in their own tongue
entirely secret (see p. 71).
*
For the notes to this concluding section of the chapter see pp. 82 ff.
The third text ('F 3') was a typescript with the title The Languages
of the Third Age, above which my father wrote 'Appendix I'. No other
of the many texts that followed has any mention of its being an
'Appendix'.
This text F 3 represents in some degree a new departure. The first
part of the work (that preceding the discussion of 'Translation') was
reduced to not much more than a third of its length in F 2, and while
my father had F 2 in front of him he turned also to the curious 'Fore-
word' F* that I have given on pp. 19 ff., and made a good deal of use
of it, as has been mentioned already.
At this stage he had not changed his view that the Exiled Noldor
retained their own language in Beleriand (see p. 62, $5), and the
'Telerian' speech (which in F 2 was originally called 'Lemberin') is
confined to a few names. Thus the conception in F 2, $18, was in
essentials preserved, although there entered here the more complex
account of the Elvish peoples of Mirkwood and Lorien:
There were also Elves of other kind. The East-elves that being
content with Middle-earth remained there, and remain even
now; and the Teleri, kinsfolk of the High Elves who never went
westward, but lingered on the shores of Middle-earth until the
return of the Noldor.(1) In the Third Age few of the Teleri were
left, and they for the most part dwelt as lords among the East-
elves in woodland realms far from the Sea, which nonetheless
they longed for in their hearts. Of this kind were the Elves of
Mirkwood, and of Lorien; but Galadriel was a lady of the
Noldor. In this book there are several names of Telerian form,(2)
but little else appears of their language.
The extremely puzzling feature of the original version, that the
language of the Numenoreans was Noldorin (for the Edain in
Beleriand learned that tongue and abandoned their own) was at first
retained in F 3; and thus the account of the Common Speech remained
unchanged, becoming if anything more explicit (cf. F 2, $$9-10,
13):
The language of the Dunedain in Numenor was thus the
Elvish, or Gnomish speech ... After the Downfall of Numenor,
which was brought about by Sauron, and the ending of the
Second Age, Elendil and the survivors of Westernesse fled back
eastward to Middle-earth. On the western shores in the days of
their power the Numenoreans had maintained many forts and
havens for the help of their ships in their great voyages; and the
chief of these had been at Pelargir at the mouths of the Anduin
in the land that was after called Gondor. There the language of
the Edain that had not passed over Sea was spoken, and thence
it spread along the coastlands, as a common speech of all who
had dealings with Westernesse and opposed the power of
Sauron. Now the people of Elendil were not many, for only a
few great ships had escaped the Downfall. There were, it is true,
many dwellers upon the west-shores who came in part of the
blood of Westernesse, being descended from mariners and
wardens of forts set there in the Dark Years; yet all told the
Dunedain were only a small people in the midst of lesser Men.
They used therefore this Common Speech in all their dealings
with other folk and in the government of the wide realms of
which they became the rulers, and it was enriched with many
words drawn from the tongues of the Elves and the Numen-
orean lords. Thus it was that the Common Speech spread far
and wide in the days of the Kings, even among their enemies,
and it became used more and more by the Numenoreans them-
selves; so that at the time of this history the Elvish speech was
spoken by only a [added: small] part of the people of Minas
Tirith, the city of Gondor, and outside that city only by the lords
and princes of fiefs.
The account of the origin and spread of the Common Speech as it
appears in Appendix F (RK p. 407) had, in point of actual wording,
been quite largely attained - and yet still with the fundamental differ-
ence, that the Numenoreans themselves spoke an Elvish tongue, and
Adunaic does not exist.
Probably while this text was still in the making, my father retyped
a portion of it, and it was only now that Adunaic entered, or re-
entered, the linguistic history. Making similar changes at the same
time to the previous text F 2 (see p. 54, note 4), he wrote now that it
was the lords of the Edain who learned the Noldorin tongue, and that
'in Numenor two speeches were used: the Numenorean (or Adunaic);
and the Elvish or Gnomish tongue of the Noldor, which all the lords
of that people knew and spoke'. In the passage just given he altered the
words that I italicised to: 'There [at Pelargir] the Adunaic, the Man-
nish language of the Edain, was spoken, and thence it spread along the
coastlands...', the remainder of the passage being left unchanged. No
further light is cast on this matter in the texts of 'Appendix F', and it
remains to me inexplicable.
There is not a great deal more that need be said about the part of
the text F 3 that deals with the languages. For the language of Orcs
and Trolls my father followed F 2, $$16 - 17, but for that of the
Dwarves he turned to F* (p. 21, $10), and repeated closely what he
had said there. But at that point, still following this text ($11), he
turned now to the subject of alphabets ('Of the alphabets of the Third
Age something also must be said, since in this history there are both
inscriptions and old writings ...'), and repeated what he had said in F*
as far as 'the Runes, or cirth, were devised by the Elves of the woods'.
Here he left the earlier text and continued as follows (the forerunner
of the passage in Appendix E, RK pp. 395, 397):
... the Runes, or Cirth as they were called, were first devised by
the Danians (far kin of the Noldor) in the woods of Beleriand,
and were in the beginning used mainly for incising names and
brief memorials upon wood, stone, or metal. From that begin-
ning they derive their peculiar character, closely similar in many
of their signs to the Runes of the North in our own times. But
their detail, arrangement, and uses were different, and there is,
it seems, no connexion of descent between the Runes and the
Cirth. Many things were forgotten and found again in the ages
of Middle-earth, and so it will be, doubtless, hereafter.
The Cirth in their older and simpler form spread far and
wide, even into the East, and they became known to many races
of Men, and developed many varieties and uses. One form of
the old Cirth was used among Men of whom we have already
spoken, the Rohirrim and their more northerly kindred in the
vale of Anduin and in Dale. But the richest and most well-
ordered alphabet of Cirth was called the Alphabet of Dairon,
since in Elvish tradition it was said to have been arranged and
enlarged from the older Cirth by Dairon, the minstrel of King
Thingol in Doriath. This' was preserved in use in Hollin and
Moria, and there mostly by the Dwarves. For after the coming
of the Noldor the Feanorian script replaced the Cirth among the
Elves and the Edain.
In this book we meet only the Short Cirth of Dale and the
Mark; and the Long Cirth of Moria, as they were called at this
time; for though the Dwarves, as with their speech, used in their
dealings with other folk such scripts as were current among
them, among themselves and in their secret memorials they still
used the ancient Alphabet of Dairon. A table is given setting out
the Short Cirth of Dale and the Mark; and the Long Cirth of
Moria in the form and arrangement applied to the Common
Speech. [The following was subsequently struck out: A list is
also given of all the strange words and the names of persons and
places that appear in the tale, in which it is shown from what
language they are derived, and what is their meaning (where
that is known);] and also the English Runes in the forms that
were used for the translation of the Cirth in The Hobbit.
The first devising of the Runes by 'the Danians (far kin of the Noldor)
in the woods of Beleriand' (where F* has 'the Elves of the woods') is
found also in the two texts given in VII.453-5, where the origin is
attributed to 'the Danian elves of Ossiriand (who were ultimately of
Noldorin race)'. The old view that the Danas or Danians (Nandor)
came from the host of the Noldor on the Great March was changed in
the course of the revision of the Quenta Silmarillion, when they
became Teleri from the host of Olwe (X.169-70; cf. the use of the old
term Lembi in F 2, p. 61, $3).
The final section of F 3, On Translation, presents a very greatly
reduced form of that in the original version, and loses virtually all of
the exemplification and discussion of the 'true' names from which the
'translation' was made: the sole Westron names that survived were
Carbandur (Rivendell) and Phuru-nargian (Moria). The new text had
indeed the structure and much of the actual wording of Appendix F,
but it was a good deal briefer; and the published text represents a re-
expansion, in which some of the old material had been reinstated, if in
altered form.(3) But since no new material was introduced in F 3, there
is no need to give more account of this part of it.
The text ends with a return to the conclusion of F*, pp. 23-4,
$$12-13:
In conclusion I will add a note on two important modern
words used in translation. The name Gnomes is sometimes used
for the Noldor, and Gnomish for Noldorin. This has been done,
because whatever Paracelsus may have thought (if indeed he
invented the name), to some Gnome will still suggest Know-
ledge. Now the High-elven name of this folk, Noldor, signifies
Those who Know; for of the Three Kindreds of the Elves from
their beginning the Noldor were ever distinguished both by
their knowledge of things that are and were in this world and
by their desire to know more. Yet they were not in any way like
to the gnomes of learned theory, or of literary and popular
fancy. They belonged to a race high and beautiful, the Elder
Children of the world, who now are gone. Tall they were, fair-
skinned and grey-eyed, though their locks were dark, save in the
golden house of Finrod; and their voices knew more melodies
than any mortal speech that now is heard. Valiant they were,
but their history was grievous; and though it was in far-off days
woven a little with the fates of the Fathers, their fate is not that
of Men. Their dominion passed long ago, and they dwell now
beyond the circles of the world, and do not return.
The naming of 'the golden house of Finrod' (later Finarfin) seems to
have been the first mention of this character that marked out the third
son of Finwe, and his children.
In a later (in fact the penultimate) text of the section On Translation
my father still retained this passage, even though by that time he had
decided against using Gnome, Gnomish at all in The Lord of the Rings
(as being 'too misleading'), and introduced it with the words 'I have
sometimes (not in this book) used Gnomes for Noldor, and Gnomish
for Noldorin'. Perhaps because the passage now seemed otiose, in the
final text he still retained a part of it but changed its application: the
word to be justified was now Elves, used to translate Quendi and
Eldar. In my discussion of this in 1.43-4 I pointed out that the words
'They were tall, fair of skin and grey-eyed, though their locks were
dark, save in the golden house of Finrod [Finarfin]' were originally
written of the Noldor only, and not of all the Eldar, and I objected that
'the Vanyar had golden hair, and it was from Finarfin's Vanyarin
mother Indis that he, and Finrod Felagund and Galadriel his children,
had their golden hair', finding in the final use of this passage an 'extra-
ordinary perversion of meaning'. But my father carefully remodelled
the passage in order to apply it to the Eldar as a whole, and it does
indeed seem 'extraordinary' that he should have failed to observe this
point. It seems possible that when he re-used the passage in this way
the conception of the golden hair of the Vanyar had not yet arisen.(4)
Despite the great contraction in F 3 of the original version, my
father repeated the long last paragraph of F* concerning dwarves
and dwarrows (pp. 23 - 4, $13) almost in its entirety, omitting only
his remarks on his liking for irregular plurals, and introducing the
Westron name Phurunargian of Moria. With the words 'and has been
so since their birth in the deeps of time' this text ends.
The next typescript, F 4, still called The Languages of the Third Age
but changed to The Languages and Peoples of the Third Age, followed
the major revision of 1951. My father's long experimentation with the
structure and expression of this Appendix now issued in his most lucid
account of the Elvish languages, in which the terms Sindar and
Sindarin at last appeared, and the acquisition of the Grey-elven tongue
by the exiled Noldor.
Besides this Common Speech there were, however, many other
tongues still spoken in the West-lands. Noblest of these were the
languages of the Western Elves (Eldar) of which two are met:
the High-elven (Quenya) and the Grey-elven (Sindarin).
The Quenya was no longer a daily speech but a learned
tongue, descended from ages past, though it was still used in
courtesies, or for high matters of lore and song, by the High
Elves, the Noldor whose language it had been in Eldamar
beyond the Sea. But when the Noldor were exiled and returned
to Middle-earth, seeking the Great Jewels which the Dark
Power of the North had seized, they took for daily use the
language of the lands in which they dwelt. Those were in the
North-west, in the country of Beleriand, where Thingol Grey-
cloak was king of the Sindar or Grey-elves.
The Sindar were also in origin Eldar, and kindred of the
Noldor, yet they had never passed the Sea, but had lingered on
the shores of Middle-earth. There their speech had changed
much with the changefulness of mortal lands in the long
Twilight, and it had become far estranged from the high and
ancient Quenya. But it was a fair tongue still, well fitted to the
forests, the hills, and the shores where it had taken shape.
In the fall of the Dark Power and the end of the First Age most
of Beleriand was overwhelmed by the waters, or burned with
fire. Then a great part of its folk went west over Sea, never to
return. Yet many still lingered in Middle-earth, and the Grey-
elven tongue in those days spread eastward; for some of the
elven-peoples of Beleriand crossed the mountains of Lune (Ered
Luin), and wherever they came they were received as kings and
lords, because of their greater wisdom and majesty. These were
for the most part Sindar; for the Exiles (such few as remained),
highest and fairest of all speaking-peoples, held still to Lindon,
the remnant of Beleriand west of the Ered Luin. There Gil-galad
was their lord, until the Second Age drew to its end.
Nonetheless to Rivendell (Imladris) there went with Master
Elrond many Noldorin lords; and in Hollin (Eregion) others of
the Noldor established a realm near to the West-gate of Moria,
and there forged the Rings of Power. Galadriel, too, was of the
royal house of Finrod of the Noldor; though Celeborn, her
spouse of Lorien, was a Grey-elf, and most of their people were
of a woodland race.
For there were other Elves of various kind in the world; and
many were Eastern Elves that had hearkened to no summons to
the Sea, but being content with Middle-earth remained there,
and remained long after, fading in fastnesses of the woods and
hills, as Men usurped the lands. Of that kind were the Elves of
Greenwood the Great; yet among them also were many lords of
Sindarin race. Such were Thranduil and Legolas his son. In his
realm and in Lorien both the Sindarin and the woodland
tongues were heard; but of the latter nothing appears in this
book, and of the many Elvish names of persons or of places that
are used most are of Grey-elven form.
From the assured and perspicuous writing alone one might think that
this belonged to the time of the Grey Annals and the Annals of Aman.
But it was by no means the last in the series of texts that finally issued
in the published form of Appendix F.
Of F 4 there are only a few other points to mention. The origin of
the Common Speech is here formulated in these words:
There [at Pelargir] Adunaic was spoken, to which language the
tongues of Men that dwelt round about were closely akin, so
that already a common speech had grown up in that region and
had spread thence along the coasts among all those that had
dealings with Westernesse.
After typing the text my father added this sentence:
Of the speech of Men of the East and allies of Sauron all that
appears is mumak, a name of the great elephant of the Harad.
A carbon copy of F 4 is extant, and here my father in a similar
addition named beside mumak also Variag and Khand (RK pp. 121,
123, 329).
Lastly, it was in F 4 that there entered the passage concerning the
new race of Trolls that appeared at the end of the Third Age. Here the
name was first Horg-hai, but changed as my father typed the text to
Olg-hai (Olog-hai in RK, p. 410). The account of them did not differ
from the final form except in the statement of their origin:
That Sauron bred them none doubted, though from what stock
was not known. Some held that they were a cross-breed
between trolls and the larger Orcs; others that they were
indeed not trolls at all but giant Orcs. Yet there was no kin-
ship from the beginning between the stone-trolls and the Orcs
that they might breed together;(5) while the Olg-hai were in
fashion of mind and body quite unlike even the largest of Orc-
kind ...
With this text and its successors the section On Translation was
typed and preserved separately, and it is not possible to relate these
precisely to the texts of the first section. Of these latter there are four
after F 4, textually complex and not all complete, and for the pur-
poses of this account it is not necessary to describe them.(6) Even if my
father had not said so very plainly himself in his letters, it would be
very evident from these drafts that the writing of an account that
would satisfy him was exceedingly tasking and frustrating, largely (I
believe) because he found the constraint of space profoundly uncon-
genial. In March 1955 (Letters no.160) he wrote to Rayner Unwin: 'I
now wish that no appendices had been promised! For I think their
appearance in truncated and compressed form will satisfy nobody';
and in the same letter he said:
In any case the 'background' matter is very intricate, useless
unless exact, and compression within the limits available leaves it
unsatisfactory. It needs great concentration (and leisure), and being
completely interlocked cannot be dealt with piecemeal. I have found
that out, since I let part of it go.
Even the final typescript of Appendix F was not a fair copy, but carried
many emendations.
Two texts of the second section of Appendix F, On Translation, are
extant, following the reduced version in F 3 (p. 76) and preceding the
final typescript. They were evidently made at a late stage in the evol-
ution of this appendix; and it was in the first of these, which may con-
veniently be called 'A', that my father reinstated a part of the detailed
discussion of names in the original version that had been discarded in
F 3. At this stage he very largely retained the name-forms found in
F 2, in his discussion of Baggins, Gamgee, Cotton, Brandywine,
Brandybuck; the word hobbit; the origin of Hobbit-names such as
Tom, Bill, Mat; Meriadoc, Samwise. There are however some differ-
ences and additions,(7) notably in his account of the curious names
found in Buckland (cf. RK pp. 413-14):
These I have often left unaltered, for if queer now, they were
queer in their own day. Some I have given a Celtic cast, notably
Meriadoc and Gorhendad. There is some reason for this. Many
of the actual Buckland (and Bree) names had something of that
style: such as Marroc, Madoc, Seredic; and they often ended in
ac, ic, oc. Also the relation of, say, Welsh or British to English
was somewhat similar to that of the older language of the Stoors
and Bree-men to the Westron.
Thus Bree, Combe, Archet, and Chetwood are modelled on
British relics in English place-names, chosen by sense: bree 'hill',
chet 'wood'. Similarly Gorhendad represents a name Ogforgad
which according to Stoor-tradition had once meant 'great-
grandfather or ancestor'. While Meriadoc was chosen to fit
the fact that this character's shortened name meant 'jolly, gay'
in Westron kili, though it was actually an abbreviation of
Kilimanac [> kali, Kalamanac].
The text A lacks the discussion (RK pp. 414-15) of the words mathom
and smial and the names Smeagol and Deagol, and ends, at the bottom
of a page, with this passage:
The yet more northerly tongue of Dale is here seen only in the
names of the Dwarves that came from that region, and so used
the language of Men there, and took their 'outer' names in that
language. The Dwarvish names in this book and in The Hobbit
are in fact all genuine Norse dwarf-names; though the title
Oakenshield is a translation.
Thus the concluding passage in F 3 (see pp. 76 - 7) concerning the use
of the word Gnomes and of the plural Dwarves is absent, but whether
because my father had rejected it, or because the end of the A type-
script is lost, is impossible to say.
In the second of these texts On Translation, which I will call 'B', he
retained all this reinstated material from A, changing some of the
name-forms,(8) and even extended it, going back to the original version
F 2 again for a passage exemplifying his treatment of the true names
in the language of the Mark. Here reappears material derived from
F 2 $$54 - 5 concerning the real native name of Rohan Lograd, the
translation of Lohtur by Eotheod and of turak 'king' by Theoden; and
this is followed by the discussion of mathom, smial, Smeagol and
Deagol - the only portion of this passage retained in the final form of
Appendix F.
In B my father followed the passage given above from A ('The yet
more northerly language of Dale ...') with a statement on the different
treatment of the 'true' Runes in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
that derives from that in F* (p. 22, $11):
In keeping with the general method of translation here outlined,
as applied to the Common Speech and other languages akin to
it, in The Hobbit the Cirth were turned into Runes, into forms
and values, that is, practically the same as those once used in
England. But since the Cirth were actually of Elvish origin, and
little used for writing the Common Speech (save by Dwarves),
while many readers of The Hobbit found the matter of scripts
of interest, in this larger history it seemed better to present the
Cirth as well as the Feanorian letters in their proper shapes and
use. Though naturally an adaptation by the translator of these
alphabets to fit modern English has had to replace their actual
application to the Westron tongue, which was very different
from ours.
This is followed by the conclusion concerning Gnomes and Dwarves
which is lacking in A.
In the final typescript, that sent to the printer, many changes entered
that were not, as was almost invariably my father's practice when pro-
ceeding from one draft to the next, anticipated by corrections made to
the preceding text: they seem in fact to have entered as he typed.(9)
There is no suggestion in text B, for instance, of the footnote to RK
p. 414 warning against an assumption, based on the linguistic trans-
position, 'that the Rohirrim closely resembled the ancient English
otherwise'; nor of the removal from the body of the text of the detailed
discussion of the word hobbit and the names Gamgee and Brandy-
wine to a note at its end;(10) nor yet of the alteration of the passage (dis-
cussed on p. 77) concerning the word Gnomes so that it should apply
to the word Elves, and the placing of it at the end of the text instead
of preceding the discussion of Dwarves. Nothing could show more
clearly the extreme pressure my father was under when, after so much
labour, he at last sent Appendix F to the publishers. It seems to me
more than likely that had circumstances been otherwise the form of
that appendix would have been markedly different.
NOTES.
1. The apparent implication here that Teleri was the name exclu-
sively of those of the Eldar who remained in Middle-earth was
certainly unintentional.
2. A footnote at this point reads: 'Such as Thranduil and Legolas
from Mirkwood; Lorien, Galadriel, Caras Galadon, Nimrodel,
Amroth and others from Loth-lorien.'
3. For an account of this reinstatement of material from F 2 see pp.
80-1, with notes 7 and 8.
4. It must be admitted, however, that the statement in the chapter
Of Maeglin in The Silmarillion (p. 136) that Idril Celebrindal
'was golden as the Vanyar, her mother's kindred' appears already
in the original text (1951; see XI.316); and of course even if the
re-use of the passage did precede the appearance of the idea of the
'golden Vanyar', it needed correction subsequently.
5. With this cf. the passage in F 2 concerning Trolls (p. 36, $17): 'the
evil Power had at various times made use of them, teaching them
what little they could learn, and even crossing their breed with
that of the larger Orcs.'
6. There is scarcely anything in the last texts that calls for special
notice, but it should be recorded that in the penultimate draft my
father revealed the meaning of the sentence in the Black Speech
uttered by one of the Orcs who was guarding Pippin in the
chapter The Uruk-hai (TT p. 48): Ugluk u bagronk sha pushdug
Saruman-glob bubhosh skai. At the end of the section Orcs and
the Black Speech (RK p. 410) this text reads:
... while the curse of the Mordor-orc in Chapter 3 of Book
Three is in the more debased form used by the soldiers of the
Dark Tower, of whom Grishnakh was the captain. Ugluk to the
cesspool, sha! the dungfilth; the great Saruman-fool, skai!
7. Where F 2 in the discussion of Baggins (p. 48) had Westron labin
'bag', and Labin-nec 'Bag End', the text A has laban, Laban-nec.
For the origin of 'hobbit' my father retained the form cubuc and
Theoden's archaic cugbagu (p. 49), noting that it meant '"hole-
dweller" (or "hole-builder")': see p. 69. He also gave here for
the first time the Westron name for 'hobbits', nathramin, though
later in the text the form banathin appears; and he provided the
true name of Hamfast Gamgee:
The Gaffer's name on the other hand was Ranadab, meaning
'settled, living in a fixed abode or group of hobbit-holes',
and hence often 'stay-at-home', the opposite of 'wanderer'.
Since this closely corresponds with ancient English bamfaest,
I have translated it as Hamfast. The shortenings [Sam and
Ham] at any rate rhyme, as did Ban and Ran in the Shire.
Moreover neither Banzira nor Ranadab were any longer
current in the Shire as ordinary words and survived only as
names, originally given no doubt as (not entirely complimen-
tary) nicknames, but used traditionally in certain families with-
out much more recognition than is the case today with, say,
Roy or Francis.
8. For Laban-nec 'Bag End' in A the second text B has Laban-neg.
The 'hobbit' word became kubug, and the Rohan form kugbagul,
changed on the typescript to cuduc and kudduka. The true
name of Gorhendad Oldbuck became Ogmandab, and that of
Meriadoc Kalimanac, altered to Kalimanoc (Kalimac in RK); that
of Hamfast Gamgee became Ranagad (Ranugad in RK), and of
Sam Banzira. The Westron word for 'hobbit' became banakil, as
in RK; but Branduhim 'foaming beer' as the Hobbits' perversion
of Baranduin remained (see note 10), as did Carbandur for
Imladris (with Karningul, as in RK, pencilled against it).
9. It is clear that there was no intermediate text.
10. The introduction of the Hobbits' original name for the river,
Branda-nin 'border-water' or 'Marchbourn', transformed into
Bralda-him 'heady ale', was only made in this last typescript.
III.
THE FAMILY TREES.
This chapter is an account of the evolution of the genealogical
tables given in Appendix C to The Lord of the Rings; and since such
a development can obviously be followed far more easily and rapidly
by successive stages of the tables themselves than by any account in
words, I present it here largely by redrawings of the original family
trees. My father followed his usual course of emending each one (most
of them being carefully, even beautifully, made) more or less roughly
in preparation for its successor; I have therefore in my redrawings
excluded subsequent alterations, when the distinction can be clearly
made.
Baggins of Hobbiton.
The first four genealogical tables of the Baggins family, to which I give
the references BA 1 to BA 4, are found on pp. 89-92.
BA 1 (p. 89).
This is the earliest tree of the family of Baggins of Hobbiton (by which
I mean the earliest fully formed and carefully presented table, exclud-
ing such hasty genealogies as that referred to in VI.222). It was very
carefully made, but was much used and corrected later, and is now a
very battered document. The number of members of the Baggins
family shown is still far fewer than in the published table; and the
presence of Folco Took (with Faramond pencilled beside it) suggests
that it belongs to the period that I have called 'the Third Phase' in the
writing of the earlier chapters of The Fellowship of the Ring, before
the emergence of Peregrin Took (see VII.31-2). It may be related there-
fore to the original text of the Prologue (see p. 3 and note 1), and to
the original tree of the Took family given in VI.317. As in that table,
the ages of those present at the Farewell Party are given, but not
extended as a system of relative dating for all members of the family
including those long dead; and dates are also given according to the
Shire Reckoning (which appeared quite early, in the autumn of 1939,
see VII.9).
It will be seen that virtually all the dates in BA 1 differ from those
for the corresponding persons in the published form, though seldom
by much.
A good deal of this genealogy was present already in the first stages
of the writing of The Lord of the Rings, but I will not return here to
the early history of the Baggins family tree, since it has been fully
recounted in The Return of the Shadow and all the names indexed. It
may be noted, howerer, that the maiden name of Miranda Burrows,
who was described (VI.283) as the 'overshadowed wife' of Cosimo
Sackville-Baggins, was never given in the narrative texts before she
disappeared (VI.324); and that Flambard Took, son of the Old Took,
and his wife Rosa Baggins had appeared in the original Took family
tree given in VI.317.
BA 2 (p. 90).
This table was a rough working version, taking up changes marked on
BA 1, and with further alterations and additions entering in the course
of its making. It was immediately followed by an even hastier version
without dates, hardly differing from BA 2, but introducing one or two
further changes that appear in BA 3 (and changing Miranda Burrows
to Miranda Noakes and then to Miranda Sandyman). I have given no
number to this text, regarding it simply as an extension of BA 2.
As my father first made this table Bingo Baggins was moved down
to become the youngest of the three sons of Mungo, but remained the
husband of Maxima Proudfoot. While it was in progress, however, a
daughter Linda Baggins was introduced above him, and she took over
the Proudfoot connection, becoming the wife of Marco Proudfoot
and the mother of Odo Proudfoot; while Bingo, now the youngest of a
family of five, as he remained, became the husband of Fatima Chubb.
Olo Proudfoot was first named Rollo; and Rosa Baggins' husband
Flambard Took becomes Hildigrim Took (the final name: see the Took
genealogy T 3 on p. 110). The names Ponto, Largo, Longo, Fosco,
Dora, replacing Longo, Tango, Largo, Togo, Semolina respectively,
remained into the final form of the genealogy. It may also be noted that
Drogo's birth-date was changed to make him a year younger than his
sister Dora, though his place in the tree was not altered; it will be seen
that in BA 3 he is again made older than her by a year.
BA 3 (p. 91).
The third Baggins family tree is one of a series of carefully made tables,
and being the first carries an explanatory head-note, as follows:
The dates in these Trees are given according to the 'Shire-reckon-
ing', in the traditional Hobbit manner, calculated from the crossing
of the Baranduin (Brandywine River), Year 1, by the brothers
Marco and Cavallo. The persons mentioned in these tables are only
a selection from many names. All are either concerned with the
events recounted in the memoirs of Bilbo and Frodo; or are men-
tioned in them; or are persons present at the Farewell Party, or the
direct ancestors of the guests on that occasion. The names of these
guests (such of the 144 as room has been found for) are marked *.
Bilbo Baggins, born 1290, went on his famous journey 1341-2.
At the age of 111 he gave his Farewell Party in 1401. Frodo Baggins
sold Bag End in 1418 and returned at the end of 1419. He left the
Shire in 1421. Meriadoc Brandybuck succeeded to Brandy Hall and
the headship of the family in 1432. Peregrin became The Took (and
Seventeenth Shirking) in 1434. The memoirs (and additions by
Samwise Gamgee) close in 1436.
The mention here of Peregrin becoming the seventeenth Shirking
relates this table at once to the texts of the Prologue (see pp. 5-7, 11)
composed after the narrative of The Lord of the Rings had been
completed, and suggests that the family trees followed something of
the same succession as is found in the Prologue texts. - I have not
included in my redrawing the stars indicating presence at the Farewell
Party, for my father only put them in later and incompletely.
On the family name Gaukroger (subsequently lost), appearing in
Togo Baggins' wife Selina Gaukroger, see VI.236 and note 10; and on
Belisarius Bolger see note 3.
BA 4 (p. 92).
The fourth tree is the first text of another set of genealogies, and seems
to belong to much the same time as BA 3. This also is finely written,
with an introductory note that is virtually the same as that in the pub-
lished form (RK p. 379), apart from the preservation of the names
Marco and Cavallo, but then continues with the second paragraph
(giving dates) of that to BA 3, and includes the reference to Peregrin's
becoming the 'Seventeenth Shirking'.
This version retains the dates of BA 3 (not repeated in the redraw-
ing), and differs from it chiefly in the addition of descendants from
Bingo and Ponto Baggins; also by the loss of Togo Baggins and his wife
Selina Gaukroger and their replacement by a second daughter of Inigo
and Belinda, Laura, and her husband Togo Gaukroger.
The new names Polo, Porro are referred to in both texts of the orig-
inal version of the Appendix on Languages (see p. 46, $43), showing
that that work followed or accompanied this stage in the development
of the family trees.
The starred names, indicating presence at the Farewell Party, are as
in the published table, with the omission of Cosimo Sackville-Baggins
and Dora Baggins: this was perhaps inadvertent, but neither name is
starred in BA 3.
Sweeping changes to the existing names were entered subsequently
on BA 4. In the introductory note Marco and Cavallo were changed
to Marcho and Blanco (see pp. 6, 17), and 'Seventeenth Shirking' to
'Twentieth Thane' (see under BA 3). In the family tree the following
changes were made, listed by generations:
Inigo Baggins > Balbo Baggins
Belinda Boffin > Berylla Boffin
Regina Grubb > Laura Grubb
Ansegar Bolger > Fastolph Bolger
Maxima Bunce > Mimosa Bunce
Cornelia Hornblower > Tanta Hornblower
Laura Baggins > Lily Baggins
Togo Gaukroger > Togo Goodbody
Bertha Baggins > Belba Baggins
Rudigor Bolger > Rudigar Bolger
Magnus Proudfoot > Bodo Proudfoot
Fatima Chubb > Chica Chubb
Robinia Bolger > Ruby Bolger
Conrad Bolger > Wilibald Bolger
Cosimo Sackville-Baggins > Lotho Sackville-Baggins
Gerda Chubb-Baggins > Poppy Chubb-Baggins
Arnor Bolger > Filibert Bolger
Porro Baggins > Porto Baggins
Crassus Burrows > Milo Burrows
Duenna Baggins > Daisy Baggins
Guido Boffin > Griffo Boffin
Flavus, Crispus, Rhoda, Fulvus Burrows > Mosco, Moro, Myrtle,
Minto Burrows
In addition, the wife of Posco Baggins was introduced, named (as
in the final form) Gilly Brownlock; and Ponto Baggins' daughter
Angelica appeared.
On the removal of the Latin names of Peony Baggins' husband and
their offspring see p. 47, $45, and commentary (p. 69).
The nomenclature and structure of the Baggins genealogy as pub-
lished was now present, except in this respect. In the final form Frodo's
aunt Dora again becomes older than her brother Drogo (see under
BA 2 above), and her husband Wilibald Bolger (see the list just given)
is removed; while Posco Baggins has a sister Prisca, born in 1306, and
she gains Wilibald as her husband.
In subsequent manuscripts (of which there were five, making nine
all told, not including incomplete drafts) these changes entered, and in
one of them the word 'spinster' was written against Dora Baggins.
Bolger of Bsdgeford.
It is a curious fact that the genealogical tables of the families of Bolger
of Budgeford and Boffin of the Yale were already in print when they
were rejected from Appendix C, but I have not been able to find any
evidence bearing on the reason for their rejection. In a letter from the
publishers of 20 May 1955 my father was told: 'We have dropped
Bolger and Boffin from Appendix C', and on 24 May Rayner Unwin
wrote: 'I have deleted the two family trees and the redundant note
that introduced them' (no copy of either tree has any note specifically
relating to them). These remarks might suggest that it was my father
who proposed their omission, though no trace can now be found of
any such request; but it is hard to see why he should have done so.
That he was pressed for space, and greatly oppressed by that necessity,
is certain, but it seems strange (if this is the explanation) that he should
have been so limited as to abandon these genealogies in order to
obtain a couple of pages elsewhere in the Appendices.
I refer to the versions of the Bolger genealogy by the letters BG, and
the three that I have redrawn, BG 1, BG 2,and BG 4, will be found on
pp. 95 - 7.
BG 1 (p. 95).
This earliest form of the Bolger family tree is entitled Bolgers of Wood-
hall. On my father's original map of the Shire, reproduced as frontis-
piece to The Return of the Shadow, the Bolger territory is marked as
lying north of the Woody End and south of the East Road (i.e. west of
the Brandywine Bridge).
The very brief table is found, together with genealogies of the Tooks
and Brandybucks, on the page that carries the original Baggins family
tree BA 1, and was very plainly made at the same time, at an early
stage in the writing of The Lord of the Rings (see pp. 85, 89); but these
early Bolgers, Scudamor, Cedivar, Savanna, Sagramor, are not found
in those texts. Robinia Bolger in the fourth generation appears also in
BA 1 as the wife of Togo Baggins; but her brother Robur is seen to
have existed independently before he was introduced into the Baggins
family in BA 2 (p. 90) as the husband of Bertha Baggins, Bilbo's aunt,
who first emerged in that version. Rollo Bolger is that friend of Bilbo's
to whom he bequeathed his feather-bed (VI.247). Olo and Odo appear
in the Took genealogy given in VI.317; for my attempt to expound
briefly the history of 'Odo Bolger' see VII.31-2.
BG 2 (p. 96).
The second version of the Bolger genealogy (1) is one of the group of
which the Baggins table BA 3 (p. 91) is the first, carrying the explana-
tory head-note. The title is now changed to Bolgers of Budgeford. In
the chapter A Conspiracy Unmasked (FR p. 118) Fredegar's family is
said to come 'from Budgeford in Bridgefields' (the only occurrence of
these names in the narrative of The Lord of the Rings).(2)
Apart from Odovacar, Rudigor (later Rudigar), and Fredegar
(applied to a different person), none of the actual names of members
of the Bolger family in this genealogy appear in the family-trees in RK,
but some recur in other tables made at the same time: thus in the
Baggins table BA 3 are found Ansegar (husband of Pansy Baggins),
Robinia (wife of Fosco Baggins), Conrad (husband of Dora Baggins),
and Belisarius (replacing Hamilcar).(3)
Two of the names subsequently rejected are mentioned in the text
F 2 of the Appendix on Languages: Celador Bolger (p. 61, note 42),
and Bildad Bolger. Bildad is mentioned in F 2 (p. 51, $50) in the con-
text of my father's not using scriptural names to 'translate' Hobbit
names: it was 'a genuine Hobbit name', he explained, that bore a
merely accidental resemblance to the Biblical Bildad (one of the
friends of Job).
The name Miranda (Gaukroger) reappears after the disappearance
of Miranda Burrows, wife of Cosimo Sackville-Baggins (p. 86). Robur
Bolger (see under BG 1) has been replaced, as in BA 3, by Rudigor, but
Robur remains as the name of Rudigor's younger brother.
BG 3.
This table corresponds to BA 4 of the Baggins clan, but it repeats
BG 2 exactly except in the addition of Robur's descendants, and in the
change of the name Gundobad to Gundahad. I have not redrawn it,
therefore, but give here the added element:
Robur = Amelia Hornblower
Omar = Alma Boffin
Arnor = Gerda Chubb-Baggins
Arnor and his wife Gerda Chubb-Baggins appear in BA 4. - The birth-
dates of these Bolgers are the same as those of their replacements in
BG 4: Robur (Rudibert) 1260, Omar (Adalbert) 1301, Arnor (Filibert)
1342.
BG 4 (p. 97).
On the Baggins table BA 4 my father made many changes to the exist-
ing names, and in so doing brought the Baggins genealogy close to its
final form. On the accompanying Bolger table BG 3 he did the same,
but even more extensively, so that of the existing names none were
left save Gundahad, Rudigar (altered from Rudigor), Odovacar (see
VII.20), and Fredegar (who becomes the former Fredegar's grandson),
and the Bolger clan have uniformly 'translated' names of Germanic
origin. At the same time three children of Wilibald Bolger (formerly
Conrad) were added; and the Hobbit family names Diggle and Light-
foot (not found in The Lord of the Rings) appear.(4)
Of those who do not appear in the published genealogies the fol-
lowing are marked as guests at the Farewell Party: Wilimar, Heribald,
and Nora, and also their mother Prisca Baggins (see p. 88), who is not
so marked in the Baggins tree. She was 95; but Frodo's still more
ancient aunt Dora was present at the age of ninety-nine.
In this case, since there is no family tree of the Bolgers in The Lord
of the Rings, I have redrawn the last of the manuscript tables, in which
the alterations made to BG 3 were set out fair; and it was in this form
that the genealogy was printed.(5) In this redrawing the names with
asterisks are those that do not appear in the genealogies of other
families in The Lord of the Rings.
Boffin of the Yale.
In The Lord of the Rings no 'homeland' of the Boffins is named, and
in the First Edition there was no mention of the Yale; but on the
original map of the Shire (frontispiece to Vol.VI) the name Boffins is
written to the north of Hobbiton Hill,(6) and Boffins are clearly asso-
ciated in early texts with the village of Northope in that region, 'only
a mile or two behind the Hill' (VI.319, 385). Northope was sub-
sequently renamed Overhill, and 'Mr. Boffin at Overhill' remained
into FR (p. 53).
But on the first Shire-map the name Northope was corrected, not to
Overhill but to The Yale, although that name does not appear in the
texts; and this must be the reference in the genealogical trees, which
retained 'Boffin of the Yale' into the printed form. Much later the
name was added to the Shire map in the Second Edition in a different
place, south of Whitfurrows and west of Stock, and a reference was
inserted into the text (FR p. 86), 'the lowlands of the Yale' (see VI.387,
note 10); but the Boffin genealogy had been abandoned before the
publication of the First Edition (p. 88).
I refer to the Boffin family trees by the letters BF, and those that I
have redrawn, BF 2 and BF 4, are found on pp. 100-1.
BF1.
There is no Boffin genealogy accompanying the very early tables of the
Baggins and Bolger families. The earliest form consists of two closely
similar, extremely rough drafts on the same pages as the two versions
of BA 2 (see p. 86): so rough and so much corrected that I have not
attempted to redraw either of them. They were in any case very largely
repeated in the following version.
BF 2 (p. 100).
This genealogy is extant in two forms, differing only in that the first of
them sets out the earliest generations separately, and begins the main
table with Otto the Fat, whereas in the second form the elements are
combined: for these purposes they can be treated as one. This table
belongs with BA 3 (p. 91) and BG 2 (p. 96).
Hugo Boffin, whose wife was Donnamira Took, and their son Jago
go back to the Took genealogy given in VI.317; Guido and his wife
Duenna Baggins, with their son Iolo, are found in the Baggins table
BA 3; and Jemima Boffin wife of Fredegar Bolger in the Bolger table
BG 2. Hugo Bracegirdle, who does not appear in the published
genealogies, is named in FR (p. 46) as the recipient of a book-case
belonging to Bilbo.
Lobelia Sackville-Baggins' dates make her 92 at her death: at the
beginning of the chapter The Grey Havens (RK p. 301) the text had
'she was after all quite ninety years old', changed on the late type-
scripts to 'more than a hundred'; and on the following version of the
Boffin genealogy her dates were altered to 1318-1420.
The subsequent development of the Boffin genealogy exactly paral-
lels that of the Bolgers, and I treat them in the same way.
BF 3.
This is written on the same page as BG 3, and as in that table the
previous version was followed exactly, but with the corresponding
addition (see p. 94) introducing Alma Boffin, the wife of Omar Bolger.
This table is not redrawn. As in the case of BG 3 (and also of the
accompanying Baggins table BA 4) a great many of the names were
changed on the manuscript of BF 3, and new Boffins were introduced
in the second generation.
BF 4 (p. 101).
As with the Bolger genealogy, I give here the final manuscript of the
Boffin table (written on the same page as BG 4), the form from which
it was printed, in which the changed names and additions made on
BF 3 appear in a fair copy; and here also the starred names indicate
those that are not found in the genealogies of other families in The
Lord of the Rings. Folco Boffin, who is not present in any of these, was
a friend of Frodo's (FR pp. 51, 76-7, and see VII.30 - 2); for Hugo
Bracegirdle see under BF 2 above.
Of those who do not appear in the published genealogies the
following are marked as being present at the Farewell Party: Vigo,
Folco, Tosto, Bruno Bracegirdle, Hugo Bracegirdle, and the 'various
descendants' of Rollo Boffin and Druda Burrows.
Brandybuck of Buckland.
The Brandybuck genealogies are referred to by the letters BR; for the
redrawn versions BR 1 and BR 4 see pp. 104-5.
BR 1 (p. 104).
This earliest version of the Brandybuck family tree is written below the
earliest of the Baggins clan (BA 1), with those of the Bolgers (BG 1)
and the Tooks (not the earliest) on the reverse.
Many of the names found here are found also in the Took genealogy
given in VI.317: Gorboduc Brandybuck and his wife Mirabella Took,
and their six children (see VI.318) Roderic, Alaric, Bellissima,
Theodoric, Athanaric, and Primula; also Caradoc, Merry's father, and
his wife Yolanda Took (cf. VI.100, 251). Merry's cousin Lamorac
appears in early texts of The Lord of the Rings,(7) where the name
replaced Bercilak (VI.273) who in the genealogy is his father. Of
Madoc (Gorboduc's father) and the descendants of his second
son Habaccuc there is no trace in those texts, except for Melissa
(afterwards replaced by Melilot, see pp. 105-6, who made herself
conspicuous at the Farewell Party, VI.38, 101).
BR 2.
This is an extremely rough table, written in ink over pencil on the
reverse of the page carrying the rough Baggins and Bolger tables BA 2
and BF 1: here my father is seen devising a much changed genealogy
of the Brandybucks. I have not redrawn it, since its names and struc-
ture largely survived into the fair copy BR 4, and it needs only to be
recorded that it was here that Gorhendad Brandybuck the 'founder'
first appeared, but with the dates 1134 - 1236, and not yet as the
remote ancestor Gorhendad Oldbuck of four centuries before; while
his son is Marmaduc, not as subsequently his grandson, and Madoc,
Sadoc, and Marroc are the sons of Marmaduc. 'Old Rory' is called
Cadwalader; and all the Latin titles (see BR 4) were already present.
BR 3.
This was another rough draft, scarcely differing from BR 2 except in
the reversal of Madoc and Marmaduc and in the addition of their
wives: Madoc's wife is Savanna Hogpen, and Marmaduc's Sultana
Bolger. In the original Bolger table (BG 1, p. 95) Savanna Bolger was
the wife of Sadoc Brandybuck, while in BG 2 the wife of Marmaduc
was Gloriana Bolger. Corrections to the text altered the name of 'Old
Rory' from Cadwalader to Sagramor (taken over from Sagramor
Bolger in BG 1), and of his wife from Matilda Drinkwater to Matilda
Goold.
BR 4 (p. 105).
This carefully made version is one of the series that includes (Baggins)
BA 3 (p. 91), (Bolger) BG 2 (p. 96), and (Boffin) BF 2 (p. 100). Addi-
tions were made subsequently to BR 4, but in this case it is convenient
to treat them as part of the table as first written (see below).
In this new version of the Brandybuck tree, comprised in BR 2-4,
my father's enjoyment of the incongruity of Hobbit customs of name-
giving culminated in such marriages as that of Madoc Superbus with
Savanna Hogpen, and, in the grandiose epithets of the heads of the
clan, with Meriadoc taking his title Porphyrogenitus from imperial
Byzantium, 'born in the purple (chamber)'. In the text F 2 of the
Appendix on Languages my father wrote (p. 47, $45): '"Classical"
names ... represent usually names derived by Hobbits from tales of
ancient times and far kingdoms of Men', and added in a footnote:
'Thus the perhaps to us rather ridiculous subnames or titles of the
Brandybucks adopted by the heads of the family, Astyanax, Aureus,
Magnificus, were originally half-jesting and were in fact drawn from
traditions about the Kings at Norbury.' Afterwards he struck out this
note and rejected classical names (see p. 69, $45).
The following additions, included in the redrawing, were made to
the table after it had been completed. Sadoc Brandybuck, at first said
to have had 'many descendants', is given 'Two sons' and a daughter
Salvia, the wife of Bildad Bolger (see BG 2, p. 96); Basilissa Brandy-
buck becomes the wife of Fulvus Burrows; their son Crassus Burrows
is added, who on account of his marriage to Peony Baggins has
appeared in BA 4 (p. 92), together with their four children; and Hilda
Bracegirdle enters as the wife of Ceredic Brandybuck, with their three
children. As the table was made Marmaduc's wife was still Sultana
Bolger, but she was changed to Gloriana as in BG 2.
BR 5.
Following the general pattern, BR 5 was recopied from BR 4 almost
as it stood: the only change made was that Gorhendad was now
actually named Gorhendad Oldbuck, retaining the note 'Built Brandy
Hall and changed the family name to Brandybuck' (retaining also the
dates 1134-1236); and then subsequently a great many of the names
were altered on the manuscript.
Gorhendad Oldbuck was replaced by Gormadoc 'Deepdelver', and
his wife Malva Headstrong was introduced. 'Gorhendad Oldbuck
of the Marish', however, is Gormadoc's father, and his dates are
1090-1191. At this time all the Latin or Greek titles of the heads of
the Brandybuck clan were replaced by English names, as in the final
genealogy. Other changes were (following the generations):
Savanna Hogpen > Hanna Goldworthy
Marmaduc > Marmadoc
Gloriana Bolger > Adaldrida Bolger (see BG 4)
Bildad Bolger > Gundabald Bolger (see BG 4)
Gorboduc > Gormanac > Gorbadoc
Orgulus > Orgulas
Sagramor > Rorimac
Matilda Goold > Menegilda Goold
Bellissima > Amaranth
Carados > Saradas
Basilissa > Asphodel
Fulvus Burrows > Rufus Burrows
Priamus > Dinodas
Columbus > Gorgulas > Gorbulas
Caradoc > Saradoc
Pandora Took > Esmeralda Took
Lamorac > Merimac
Ceredic > Seredic
Crassus Burrows > Milo Burrows (see p. 88)
Melampus > Marmadas
Bercilac > Berilac
Roderic > Doderic
Alberic > Ilberic
Cara > Celandine
Marcus > Merimas
Melissa > Mentha
Mantissa > Melilot
The names of the children of Milo Burrows and Peony Baggins,
Flavus, Crispus, Rhoda, and Fulvus, were struck out but not replaced,
since they appear in the Baggins genealogy (see p. 88 and RK p. 380).
Only in these respects does BR 5 as corrected differ from the final
form (RK p. 382): Gorhendad Oldbuck is the father, not the remote
ancestor of Gormadoc Brandybuck; and Merry is still named
Meriadoc Took-Brandybuck. Subsequently my father altered the note
on Gorhendad to begin 'c.740 began the building of Brandy Hall', but
left in his dates as 1090 - 1191, which survived into the proof, as did
Meriadoc Took-Brandybuck, when they were deleted.
Took of Great Smials.
The final genealogy of the Tooks was achieved without the great
upheaval of names that took place in those of the Baggins, Bolger,
Boffin and Brandybuck families. I give the letter T to the versions, T 1
being the very early form printed in VI.317; the redrawn versions T 2,
T 3, and T 4 appear on pp. 109-11.
T2 (p. 109).
This version is found on the page that carries also the first genealogies
of the Baggins, Bolger, and Brandybuck families, BA 1, BG 1, and
BR 1. It is very closely related to T 1, and indeed differs from it chiefly
in giving the dates according to the years of the Shire Reckoning,
rather than the ages of the persons relative to the Farewell Party. If
the age of each person given in T 1 is subtracted from the year of the
Farewell Party, the birth-dates in T 2 agree in nearly every case.(8) The
only other changes are the reversal of the order of Isambard and
Flambard, sons of the Old Took;(9) the addition of Vigo's son Uffo,
and of Uffo's son Prospero (see VI.38); and the change of Odo Took-
Bolger to Odo Bolger.
T3 (p. 110).
The development of this version is best understood by comparison
with T 2; but it may be noted that Isembard (for earlier Isambard) has
been restored to the second place among the sons of the Old Took,
while Flambard, husband of Rosa Baggins, is renamed Hildigrim (a
change seen also in the Baggins tables BA 1 and 2). Fosco becomes
Sigismond, and rather oddly both Hildigrim and Sigismond have a son
named Hildibrand (formerly Faramond and Vigo): the Hildibrand son
of Hildigrim was replaced subsequently on the manuscript by Adal-
grim, as he remained. Among the many changes in the third and fourth
generations from the Old Took may be noted the arrival of Peregrin
son of Paladin (see VII.35), while Odo Bolger becomes Hamilcar; the
replacement of Merry's mother Yolanda by Pandora (cf. the Brandy-
buck tables BR 1 and 4); and the appearance of Odovacar Bolger (cf.
BG 2).(10)
T4 (p. 111).
At this stage (corresponding to BA 3, BG 2, BF 2, and BR 4) my father
made a series of four tables all closely similar - differing scarcely at all,
in fact, except in the names of the children of the Old Took, who were
increased in number without thereby altering the subsequent gener-
ations as they now existed. I have redrawn the fourth of these, calling
it T 4, but note below the differences in the three preceding versions.
In all four copies the first ancestor recorded in the tree is now Isen-
grim II, with the title 'Seventh Shirking' (in the first copy 'Shireking or
Shirking'), on which see p. 87. Isengrim eldest son of the Old Took,
now Isengrim III, retained through three copies the dates given to him
in T 3, 1232 - 1282, remarkably short-lived among all the centen-
arians, with the note added 'no children'. In all the copies the holders
of the title Shirking are underlined, as the Thains are starred in the
final form (RK p. 381).
A daughter named Gloriana, following Isengrim III, was introduced
in the first copy, but was changed at once to Hildigunda (see below),
either because Gloriana Bolger (BG 2, BR 4) already existed or
because the name Gloriana was at once transferred to her. Hildigunda
had a brief life, her dates on the first copy being 1235 - 1255; on sub-
sequent copies no dates were given, but she is said to have 'died
young'. On the third copy her name was changed to Hildigard, as it
remained.
Between Hildigunda / Hildigard and Hildigrim, a son of the Old
Took named Isumbras IV (the remote ancestor being now Isumbras
III) was introduced, himself the father and grandfather of subsequent
Shirkings. Since Isengrim III had no descendants, on the death of
the unmarried Ferumbras III the headship of the family passed to the
descendants of the third son of the Old Took, Hildigrim, and thus
Pippin's father Paladin became the Shirking. It seems probable that the
alterations to this part of the genealogy were made in order to achieve
this.(11)
After Hildigrim there enters Isembold, with no descendants indi-
cated; and after Isembold there was in the first copy Hildigunda,
changed to Hildifuns when Hildigunda replaced Gloriana (see above).
On the third copy Hildifuns became Hildifons: he lived to the ripe age
of 102 (see below), again with no descendants shown.
Isembard was moved down to become the seventh child of the Old
Took; while Sigismond (the fourth child in T 3) changes place with his
son Hildibrand. Finally, a twelfth child entered on the third copy:
Isengar, about whom nothing is said.
Pippin's son Faramir I and his wife Goldilocks, daughter of Sam-
wise, entered on the fourth copy (T 4).
The version T 4 received a number of changes of name, though far
fewer than in the preceding families, and some added notes; the title
was changed to 'Tooks of Great Smials'.
Isengrim II (seventh Shirking) > Isengrim II (tenth Thain of the
Took line)
Bandobras: (many descendants) > (many descendants, including
the Northtooks of Long Cleeve)
Isembold: [added:] (many descendants)
Hildifons 1244-1346 > Hildifons 1244- (went off and never
returned)
Gorboduc Brandybuck > Gormanac Brandybuck (see below)
Isengar: [added:] said to have 'gone to sea' in his youth
Paladin II > Pharamond II (see below)
Pandora > Esmeralda (see p. 101)
Caradoc Brandybuck > Saradoc Brandybuck (see p. 103)
Diamanda > Rosamunda (see BG 4)
Prima > Pearl
Pamphila > Pimpernel
Belisarius Bolger > Fredegar Bolger
Faramond > Ferdibrand
In addition, Pippin's mother Eglantine Banks was introduced, and his
wife Diamond of Long Cleeve; and 'several [> three] daughters' were
given to Adelard Took.
In subsequent manuscript versions the points in which the gen-
ealogy still differed from the final form were corrected: thus Pippin's
father reverted from Pharamond II to Paladin II; Gormanac Brandy-
buck became Gorbadoc, as also in the Brandybuck genealogy (p. 103);
and Folco Boffin was omitted, perhaps because of the difficulty of
fitting him in (he appeared in any case in the Boffin genealogy).
The Longfather-tree of Master Samwise.
There is no very early genealogy of the Gamgees and Cottons, and the
first version to appear belongs with the group beginning with the
Baggins table BA 3: it is indeed written on the same page as BG 2 of
the Bolgers. The tables have different titles, and I letter them S, those
that I have redrawn being found on pp. 114-16.
S1 (p. 114).
This consists of two brief tables set out side by side without intercon-
nection: the only link between the two families being the marriage of
Sam Gamgee with Rose Cotton. It is notable that their children are
only eight in number, ending with Daisy born in 1436. In the first
version of the Epilogue to The Lord of the Rings, which takes place in
that year, Daisy was the youngest, in her cradle (IX.114). In the second
version (IX.122) this was repeated, but corrected to say that it was
Primrose, the ninth child, who was in the cradle.
S2 (p. 115).
I include under this reference two closely related tables both with the
same title (the first form, not redrawn, differs from the second only in
these points: Wiseman Gamwich is absent, and Hamfast of Gamwich,
who 'moved to Tighfield', is the father of Hob Gammidge the Roper;
Ham Gamgee's sister May is absent; and neither the husband of
Elanor nor the husband of Goldilocks is shown). The second form,
like S 1, is part of the series beginning with the Baggins table BA 3.
In these texts the Cotton family is again written out separately
from the Gamgees, but Sam's sister Marigold is now the wife of Rose
Cotton's brother Tom ('Young Tom', RK p. 286). It will be seen that
at this stage the third family, beginning with Holman 'the green-
handed' of Hobbiton (as he is named in the final form), had not yet
entered the genealogy; and that Sam and Rose had fourteen children,
not as later thirteen, the youngest being Lily (born when her parents
were very advanced in years, according to the dates given!). Lily
survived into the first proof, when she was deleted.
Later correction to S 2 replaced Goodwill Whitfoot (Elanor's hus-
band) by Fastred Fairbairn (in the final form Fastred of Greenholm),
and rejected the Whitfoots of the White Downs, adding this hasty
note: 'They removed to a new country beyond the Far Downs, the
Westmarch between Far Downs and Tower Hills. From them are come
the Fairbairns of the Towers, Wardens of Westmarch.' The sentence in
the Prologue (FR p. 18) 'Outside the Farthings were the East and West
Marches: the Buckland; and the Westmarch added to the Shire in
S.R.1462' was added in the Second Edition (see p. 17).
S3 (p. 116).
This version, untitled, was written on the reverse of the 'Note'
concerning the two versions of Bilbo's story about his meeting with
Gollum (see p. 12).
Here the 'greenhanded' strain entered the genealogy, but the gen-
erations, in relation to the Gamgees and the Cottons, would sub-
sequently be displaced 'upwards': see under S 4. This version has no
note on the Fairbairns.
S4.
In this finely made tree, entitled 'Genealogy of Master Samwise, show-
ing the rise of the family of Gardner of the Hill', the final form was
reached in all but a few points. The moving up of the 'Greenhands' by
a generation now entered: Hending 'greenhand' of Hobbiton
remained, but was now born in 1210; his children likewise have birth-
dates earlier by some forty years; and Hending's daughters Rowan and
Rose now marry, not Hobson Gamgee and Wilcome Cotton, but their
fathers, Hob Gammidge and Cotman.
At first sight my father's alteration of names in the family trees, as
here, with its baffling movement of Holmans and Halfreds, may seem
incomprehensibly finicky, but in some cases the reasons can be clearly
seen, and this is in fact a good example. In S3 Ham Gamgee is said to
have 'taken up as a gardener with his uncle Holman': this is Holman
Greenhand the gardener, brother of his mother Rowan - and he is 'old
Holman' who looked after the garden at Bag End before Ham Gamgee
took on the job (FR p. 30). But with the displacement of the 'Green-
hand' generations that entered in S4 Holman Greenhand would
become Ham Gamgee's great-uncle (brother of his grandmother
Rowan), and so too old. It was for this reason that my father changed
Holman Greenhand of S 3, born in 1292, to Halfred Greenhand (born
in 1251), and gave him a son named Holman, born in 1292, described
in the final genealogy as Ham Gamgee's 'Cousin Holman': he was
Ham Gamgee's first cousin once removed.
In S 4 Hending's third son (Grossman in S 3) is Holman: the names
of father and son were subsequently reversed. Ham Gamgee's brother
Holman of Overhill remained (later Halfred of Overhill); and
Wilcome Cotton becomes Holman Cotton, as in the final form, but his
nickname is 'Long Holm', not 'Long Hom'. This name Holman is to
be taken, I think, in the sense 'hole-dweller'.
Elanor's husband remains in S 4 Fastred Fairbairn, and Frodo's son,
Samwise Gardner in S 3, reverts to Samlad Gardner as in S 2: this was
corrected to the final name, Holfast. The dates of birth of the children
of Sam Gamgee and Rose Cotton remain as they were in S 3; thus
Primrose, the ninth child, was born in 1439 (see under S 1 above).
In all other respects S 4 was as the final genealogy, including the note
on the Fairbairns; and it was on this manuscript that the last cor-
rections were made (the birth-date of Sam and Rose's last child, Lily,
becoming 1444).
S4 was followed by a beautifully drawn tree, from which the
genealogy in The Lord of the Rings was printed, and here the final title
entered. As already noticed, it was on the first proof that Lily was
removed.
NOTES.
1. This manuscript of the Bolger family was the latest that remained
in my father's possession, and he had of course no copies of the
texts that went to Marquette. Years later he wrote on BG 2:
'Doesn't fit genealogies published. Fredegar should be born about
1385-8. Put in Estella 1387'. On one of his copies of the First
Edition he added to the genealogy of the Tooks (Fredegar's
mother being Rosamunda Took) 'Estella' as the sister of Fredegar
and her birth-date 1385; and to the Brandybuck genealogy he
added to Meriadoc '= Estella Bolger 1385', noting beside this that
he had told a correspondent in 1965 that 'I believe he married
a sister of Fredegar Bolger of the Bolgers of Budgeford'. These
corrections, for a reason unknown to me, were not incorporated
in the Allen and Unwin Second Edition, but they did occur in a
later impression of the Ballantine edition of 1966, and hence
Estella Bolger and her marriage to Merry Brandybuck are entered
in The Complete Guide to Middle-earth by Robert Foster.
These additions to the family trees were made at the instance
of Douglas A. Anderson in the Houghton Mifflin edition of 1987,
to which he contributed a note on the history of the text. Estella
Bolger and her marriage to Meriadoc have finally entered the
British 'tradition' in the re-set edition published by HarperCollins
in 1994 (see Douglas Anderson's 'Note on the Text' in this
edition, p. xii).
2. My statement in VII.39, note 19, that Bridgefields does not
appear on the original map of the Shire is erroneous: it is pen-
cilled on that map (and can be seen in the reproduction, frontis-
piece to Vol.VI) beside the name Bolger, a region just south-west
of the Brandywine Bridge. As noted in VII.39, on my large map
of the Shire made in 1943 my father pencilled in the name Budge-
ford, this being the crossing of the Water by the road (entered on
the map at the same time) from Whitfurrows on the East Road to
Scary. At the same time he wrote in Bridgefields in a new position,
north-west of the Brandywine Bridge and north of the East Road,
as it appears on the published map of the Shire.
3. In late typescripts of the chapters in which Fredegar Bolger
appears in The Lord of the Rings the name Belisarius (with the
nickname Belly, which no doubt accounts for the choice)
replaced the earlier Hamilcar, and was then itself replaced by
Fredegar.
4. Jemima Boffin of BG 2 was first renamed Jasmine, which was
replaced by the form Jessamine; and so also in the Boffin gen-
ealogy.
5. On one of the proofs my father corrected Fredegar's birth-date
from 1377 to 1380, but the genealogy was omitted from the book
before this was introduced; in the Took table, however, the date
was changed. See note 1.
6. This was in fact an alteration (VI.298 and note 1): originally my
father marked the Boffins north-west of the Woody End, and the
Bolgers north of Hobbiton, subsequently changing them about;
cf. VI.298, 'as far west as Woodhall (which was reckoned to be
in the Boffin-country)'.
7. In VI.273, 275 I printed the name as Lanorac, which was a mis-
reading of the difficult manuscript.
8. In VI.316 I noted that some of the figures in T 1 were changed on
the manuscript, and gave a list of them; but I said that these were
'the earlier ones', whereas they are in fact the corrected figures.
See note 9.
9. In T 1 the birth-dates of Isambard and Flambard were 170 and
165 years before the Farewell Party, but these were changed
(see note 8) to 160 and 167 (in T 2 1241 and 1234); hence the
reversal of the positions of the brothers in T 2.
10. On T 2 Uffo Took and his son Prospero were corrected to
Adelard and Everard (see VI.247, 315), Uffo becoming a Boffin
name (see BF 2). It will thus be seen that they have been removed
from the descent of the fourth son (Fosco > Sigismond) and given
to that of the second son Isembard (formerly without any
descendants named), whose son Flambard takes over the former
name of Hildigrim.
11. Farmer Cotton's reference to Pippin's father as the Thain ('You
see, your dad, Mr. Peregrin, he's never had no truck with this
Lotho, not from the beginning: said that if anyone was going to
play the chief at this time of day, it would be the right Thain of
the Shire and no upstart ...') was a late addition to the text of the
chapter The Scouring of the Shire (RK p. 289); for the original
form of the passage see IX.99.
IV.
THE CALENDARS.
The earliest text of what became Appendix D to The Lord of the Rings
is a brief, rough manuscript without title, which I will call D 1. In style
and appearance it suggests association with the first of the two closely
related manuscripts of the Appendix on Languages, F 1 (see p. 28),
and that this is the case is shown by a reference in the text to 'the note
on Languages p. 11'. This in fact refers to the second version, F 2,
which was thus already in existence (see p. 136, note 2). D 1 was fol-
lowed, clearly at no long interval, by a fair copy, D 2, exactly parallel
to the manuscripts F 1 and F 2 of the Appendix on Languages; and
thus the order of composition was F 1, F 2; D 1, D 2. I have no doubt
at all that all four texts belong to the same time, which was certainly
before the summer of 1950 (see p. 28 and note 1), and probably
earlier: in fact, an envelope associated with D 1 is postmarked August
1949.
In this case, since the texts are far briefer than F 1 and F 2, and since
the second manuscript D 2 was substantially altered from its pre-
decessor, I give them both. These earliest versions of the Appendix on
Calendars show, as do those of the Appendix on Languages, how far
the conception still was, when The Lord of the Rings had been com-
pleted, from the published form. There follows here the text of the
manuscript D 1.
In the Shire the Calendar was not arranged as ours is; though
the year seems to have been of the same length, for long ago as
those times are now, reckoned in years and men's lives, they
were not (I suppose) far back in the age of Middle-earth.
According to the Hobbits themselves they had no 'week' when
they were a wandering people, and though they had months,
reckoned by the moon, their keeping of dates and time was not
particularly accurate. In Eriador (or the West-lands) when they
settled down they adopted the reckoning of the Dunedain,
which was of Elvish origin. But the Hobbits of the Shire after a
while altered things to suit their own convenience better. 'Shire-
reckoning' was eventually adopted also in Bree.
It is difficult to discover from old records precise details about
those things which everybody knows and takes for granted, nor
am I skilled in such abstruse matters. But in that part of Middle-
earth at that time it seems that the Eldar (who had, as Sam said,
more time at their disposal) reckoned in centuries. Now they
had observed - I do not know how, but the Eldar have many
powers, and had observed many centuries - that a century con-
tains, as near as no matter for practical purposes, 36524 days.
They therefore divided it into 100 years (or sun-rounds) of 366
days, and dealt with the inaccuracy, not as we do by inserting at
intervals an additional day to make up for the deficit, but by
ejecting a few days at stated times to reduce the surplus. Every
four years they would have used three days too many, if they
had done nothing to correct it.
Normally they divided their year of 366 days into twelve
months, six of 31 and six of 30 days. They alternated from
January to June 31, 30; from July to December 30, 31. It will be
observed that their months thus had the same lengths as ours,
except for February, 30, and July, 30. Every eighth year they got
rid of their excess of 6 days by reducing all months to 30 days;
and these years were called ['Equal-month Years' or 'Thirty-day
Years' >] 'Sixty-week Years' or 'Short Years'.
The Elvish week had only six days; so normal years had 61
weeks, and every eighth year had 60 weeks. The first day of the
year always began on the first day of the week. In the Short
(eighth) Years every month began on the first day of the week.
In the normal years they progressed thus: 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4,
5,5,6,6.(1)
The Eldar still at the end of a century would have had 36525
days, not 35624; so once a century they left out the last day of
the last month (reducing December to 30 days). The week-day
went with it: there was no sixth day of the week in the last week
of the century.
The Dunedain altered these arrangements. They favoured the
number 7, and also found a seven-day week more convenient.
They also preferred a system by which all the months had the
same lengths and did not vary at intervals. [Struck out later:
They had 12 months (not 13) so that the year could be divided
into two exact halves.)
In Gondor, therefore, and in most regions where the Com-
mon Speech was used, the year had 365 days; there were 12
months of 30 days each; and 52 weeks of 7 days each. But the
method of dealing with the extra 5 days differed in different
countries.
In Gondor, between June 30 and July 1 they placed a kind of
short month of 5 days, which were called The Summer Days,
and were a time of holiday. The middle day of the Summer Days
(the third) was called Midyear's Day and was a festival. Every
fourth year there were 6 Summer Days, and the Midyear festi-
val was two days long (celebrated on the third and fourth days).
In the last or hundredth year of a century the additional Sum-
mer Day was omitted, bringing the total to 36524.
In the Shire (and eventually in Bree where Shire-reckoning
was finally adopted) there were 3 Summer Days, called in the
Shire The Lithe or The Lithedays; and 2 Yule Days, the last of
the Old Year and the first of the New.* Every fourth year there
were 4 Lithedays [added: except in the last year of a century].
The Lithedays and the Yuledays were the chief holidays and
times of feasting. The additional Litheday, called Overlithe, was
a day of special feasting and merrymaking. Yule was in full the
last week of the old year and the first of the new, or in Shire-
reckoning (since December had only 30 days) December 24 to
January 7 inclusive; but the two middle days of the period, Old
Year's Day or Yearsend (December 30) and New Year's Day or
Yearsday (January 1), were the great Yuledays, or Yule proper.
The Hobbits introduced one notable innovation (the Shire-
reform). They found the shifting of the weekday name in rela-
tion to dates from year to year untidy and inconvenient. So in
the time of Isengrim II they arranged that the odd day, which
put the succession out, should have no weekday name. So
Midyear's Day (the second and middle day of the Lithe) had no
weekday name, and neither had Overlithe (which followed it in
every fourth year). After this reform the year always began on
the first day of the week and ended on the last day of the week;
and the same date in one year always had the same weekday
name in all other years. In consequence of which Hobbits never
troubled to put weekdays on their letters. They found this very
(* The reckoning of the year's beginning had varied much in various
times and places. The beginning after Yule (originally intended to be
at the Winter Solstice) was used in the North Kingdom and eventually
adopted by Hobbits. The wild Hobbits were said to have begun their
year with the New Moon nearest to the beginning of Spring. The
settled Hobbits for a time began their year after Harvest, roughly
October 1st. This habit long endured in Bree. In Gondor after the
downfall of Baraddur a new era was begun with that day reckoned as
the first day of its first year.)
convenient in the Shire, but of course, if they travelled further
than Bree, where the reform was adopted, they found it rather
confusing.
It will be observed if one glances at a Hobbit (perpetual)
Calendar that the only day on which no month began was a
-Friday. It was thus a jesting idiom in the Shire to speak of 'on
Friday the first' when referring to a day that did not exist, or to
a day on which impossible events like the flying of pigs or (in the
Shire) the walking of trees might be expected to occur. In full the
expression was 'Friday the first of Summerfilth', for there was
no such month.
In the above notes I have used our modern month and week-
day names, though of course neither the Eldar nor the Dunedain
nor the Hobbits actually did so. But dates are both important
and easily confused, so that I thought a translation into our
familiar names essential. These may very properly be allowed to
represent the usual names in Gondor and in the Common
Speech. But in fact, the Hobbits of the Shire and of Bree
adhered to old-fashioned month-names, which they seem to
have picked up in antiquity from the Men of the Anduin-vale;
at any rate very similar names were found in Dale and in Rohan
(see the note on Languages p. 11).(2) The original meanings of
these had been as a rule long forgotten and they had become in
consequence worn down in form, -math for instance at the end
of four of them is a reduction of month. There was some varia-
tion in the names. Several of the Bree-names differed from those
of the Shire, and in one or two cases the East-farthingers agreed
with Bree.
Shire Bree
January Afteryule Frery (also East Farthing)
February Solmath (a) Solmath (a)
March Rethe (3) Rethe
April Astron Chithing (also East Farthing)
May Thrimilch (b) Thrimidge
June Forelithe Lithe
The Lithe or The Summer
Lithedays Days
July Afterlithe Mede
August Wedmath Wedmath
September Halimath Harvest(math) (also East Farthing)
October Winterfilth [Wintermath >] Wintring
November Blotmath (c) Blooting
December Foreyule Yulemath
(a) Pronounced So'math. (b) Pronounced Thrimidge and also
written Thrimich, Thrimidge, the latter being already most
usual in Bilbo's time. (c) Often pronounced Blommath. There
were often jests in Bree about 'Winterfilth in the Shire', after the
Breefolk had altered their name to Wintring; but the name had
probably meant 'filling, completion' and may have derived from
the time when the year ended and began in October after Har-
vest. Winter was indeed (as still with us) often used for 'year' in
reckoning age.(4)
The Hobbit week was taken from the Dunedain and the
names were translations of the names given by the Dunedain
following the Eldar. The six-day week of the Eldar had days
dedicated to the Stars, Sun, Moon, the Two Trees of Valinor, the
Sky, and the Valar or Rulers, in that order, the last day being the
chief or high day.
The Dunedain kept the dedications and order, but altered the
fourth day to Tree-day with reference to the Eldest Tree of
which a descendant grew in Numenor, and desiring a seven day
week and being great mariners they inserted a Sea-day after the
Sky-day.
The Hobbits took over this arrangement, but the meanings of
the days were soon forgotten and the names reduced in form.
The 'translation' was made more than a thousand years before
Bilbo's time. In the oldest known records of the Shire, in the ear-
lier parts of the Great Writ of Tuckborough,(5) the names
appeared in the following archaic forms.
1. Sterrendei that is Stars' day
2. Sunnendei Sun's day
3. Monendei Moon's day
4. Treowesdei Tree's day
5. Heovenesdei Heaven's (Sky's) day
6. Meresdei Sea's day
7. Hihdei High day
But in the language of the date of the Red Book these names had
become written: Sterday (or Stirday), Sunday, Munday, Trews-
day, Hevensday, Mersday, Hiday; and Hevensday was univer-
sally pronounced Hensdy and often written He'nsday. The
spelling Stirday (usual in the Red Book) was due to the fact that,
the old meaning being forgotten, Stirday, which began the week
again, after the holiday of Hiday, was popularly supposed to be
connected with Stirring.
Since the Hobbit-names are accidentally somewhat like our
own, and two are identical (in spoken form)(6) I thought it would
be inconvenient to translate them according to their order. I
have therefore translated them according to their sound. But it
must be remembered that the associations in the Shire were dif-
ferent. Translated the week runs: Saturday, Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. But Saturday was the
first day of the week, and Friday the last. In associations Satur-
day was more like our Monday and Friday like our Sunday.
The month names I have, as explained above, translated. But
for fear of getting into confusion I have left Bilbo's and Frodo's
dates unchanged: that is, I have kept the Hobbit lengths of
month. This only closely concerns this book at the turn of the
years 1418 - 19. It must then be remembered by those who wish
to follow the various movements of the characters that while
December 1418 and January 1419 have (because of the addi-
tion of a Yule-day to each) the same length as ours, February
has 30, so that e.g. March 25 would be March 27 in our reck-
oning.
The Leapday or Overlithe does not concern the Red Book, as
it did not occur in any of the important years for the story of the
Ring. It occurred in the year before Bilbo went to the Lonely
Mountain, 1340; it had been missed in 1400 being the end of a
century (just before Bilbo's Farewell Party in 1401), and so had
not occurred from 1396 until 1404. The only years dealt with
in the Red Book in which it occurred were 1420, the famous
Harvest, and 1436. But though no doubt the feasting at Over-
lithe in 1420 was tremendous it is not mentioned specially.(7) The
Book ends before the Lithe of 1.436.
It will be seen that the account of the Eldarin calendar in Middle-earth
given in D1 bears no relation to that in the published text. Moreover,
while the Shire Calendar as described in D 1 was preserved without
change, it is much more closely based on the Numenorean system than
in Appendix D. In D 1 both calendars had a year of 12 months of 30
days each, and the only difference in that of the Shire was the distri-
bution of the five Summer Days of Gondor into two Yuledays and
three Summer Days or Lithedays (the leap-year day of Overlithe or
fourth Litheday corresponding to the sixth Summer Day in Gondor).
In Appendix D, on the other hand, the Numenorean calendar had ten
months of 30 days and two of 31 (making 362), with the three 'extra
days' being yestare (the beginning of the year), loende (the mid-day),
and mettare (the ending of the year).
In writing of the names of the months and days of the week my
father used the word 'translation'. He was referring, of course, to the
substitution of e.g. Thursday for Mersday or March for Rethe. But it
is to be remembered that Mersday, Rethe, etc. were themselves feigned
to be 'translations' of the true Hobbit names. We do not know what
the 'real' translation of the Numenorean name Oraearon (RK p. 388)
was; the theory is that my father devised a translation of the Hobbit
name, which he knew, in archaic English form, Meresdei later Mers-
day, and then substituted Thursday in the narrative. The rhyming of
'Trewsday, Hensday, Mersday, Hiday' with our 'Tuesday, Wednesday
(Wensday), Thursday, Friday' he naturally called an accidental like-
ness; but it was an astonishing coincidence! I am much inclined to
think that the Hobbit calendar was the original conception, and that
the names of the days were in fact devised precisely in order to provide
this 'accidental likeness'. If this is so, then of course the earlier history
of the names of the week (going back to the six-day week of the Eldar)
was a further evolution in this extraordinarily ingenious and attractive
conception. It is notable, I think, that the Elvish names do not appear
until the text D 2 (where the Sindarin names are called, as is to be
expected, Noldorin).
This second text now follows (with certain omissions, which are
noted). It is a very carefully written manuscript, bearing the title The
Calendar. I believe it to have been written soon after D 1.
The Calendar.
The Calendar in the Shire differed in several features from ours.
The year seems to have been of the same length, for long ago as
those times are now, reckoned in years and lives of men, they
were not, I suppose, very remote according to the memory of
the Earth. It is recorded by the Hobbits that they had no 'week'
when they were still a wandering people, and though they had
'months', governed more or less by the Moon, their keeping of
dates and calculations of time were vague and inaccurate. In the
west-lands of Eriador, when they had begun to settle down, they
adopted the reckoning of the Dunedain of the North-kingdom,
which was ultimately of Elvish origin; but the Hobbits of the
Shire introduced several minor alterations. This calendar, or
'Shire-reckoning' as it was called, was eventually adopted also
in Bree, except for the Shire-usage of counting as Year 1 the year
of the foundation or colonization of the Shire.
It is often difficult to discover from old tales and traditions
precise information about those things which people knew well
and took for granted in their own day, like the names of letters,
or of the days of the week, or the names and lengths of months.
I have done as well as I could, and have looked into some of the
surviving works on chronology. Owing to their general interest
in genealogy, and to the [added: later] interest of the learned
among them in ancient history, the Shire-hobbits seem to have
concerned themselves a good deal with dates; and they even
drew up complicated tables showing the relations of their own
system with others. I am not learned or skilled in these abstruse
matters, and may have made many mistakes; but at any rate the
chronology of the crucial years (Shire-reckoning 1418, 1419) is
so carefully set out in the Red Book that there cannot be much
doubt about days and times at this point.
It seems clear that the Eldar, who had, as Samwise remarks,
more time at their disposal, reckoned in centuries, and the
Quenya word yen, often translated 'year', really means a hun-
dred of our years, sometimes called quantien or 'full year'. Now
they observed - I do not know how or when: but the Eldar have
many powers, and they had observed many centuries - that the
century or quantien contained, exactly or exactly enough for
practical purposes, 36524 days. They therefore divided it into
100 coranari * (sun-rounds or years) of 366 days. This would
have given them 36600 days, or 76 too many; and they dealt
with the inaccuracy, not as we do by inserting at intervals an
additional day to make up for a deficit, but by ejecting a few
days at stated times to reduce the surplus. Every four years they
would have had (very nearly) three days too many, if they had
done nothing to correct this. Their method of correction may
seem complicated to us, but they favoured the numbers six and
twelve, and they were chiefly concerned to make things work
out properly at the end of their 'full year' or century.
Normally they divided their coranar of 366 days into twelve
months, six of 31 days and six of 30 days. The lengths alter-
nated from January + to June 31, 30; and from July to Decem-
ber 30, 31. It will be observed that their months thus had the
same lengths as ours, except for February, 30 (usual in all the
calendars of this period), and July, 30. Every eighth year they
(* Also called in less astronomical contexts loa 'time of growth', sc.
of plants, etc.)
(+ The month-names are here translated to avoid confusion.)
got rid of the excess of 6 days by reducing all the months to 30
days and thus having a year (or coranar) of only 360 days.
These years they called 'Short Years' or 'Sixty-week Years'.
The Eldarin week had only six days, so normal years had 61
weeks, and every eighth year had 60 weeks. The first day of the
coranar always began on the first day of the week. In the Short
Years every month also began with the first day.
These eight-year cycles ran on regularly until the end of the
96th year of the quantien or century. There then remained four
more years to deal with, and 1460 days were required to com-
plete the full tale of 36524. Four years of 365 days would have
done this, but that would not have fitted the Elves' six-day
week. Their actual arrangement, rounding off the quantien
neatly, was this: at the end of the century they had a half-cycle
of three long years of 366 days (total 1098), and one short year
(the last of the century) of 360: making 1458 and exactly com-
pleting the weeks. The two more days still required (8) were added
at the end and the beginning of the quantien; they had no week-
day name nor month, but only their names: Quantarie Day of
Completion, Oldyear's Day, and Vinyarie Newyear's Day; they
were times of festival. Thus the year 1 of the Eldarin century had
367 days; Years 8, 16, 24, 32, 40, 48, 56, 64, 72, 80, 88, 96 had
360 days; Year 100 had 361; and the remainder had 366. It is
thus impossible to translate an Eldarin date into our terms
without a possible error of some days, unless one knows at what
point in an Eldarin century a given year stands, and whether that
century did in fact begin on what we should call January 1.*
(* I believe that the Elves observe the Sun and stars closely, and make
occasional corrections. Their quantieni are arranged, I am told, to
begin as nearly as possible with the first sunset after the Winter
Solstice. The Eldarin 'day' or are was reckoned not from midnight, but
from the moment of the disappearance of the sun below the horizon
as observed from the shores of the sea. Among other peoples the reck-
oning of the year's beginning had varied much at different times,
though it was usually at mid-winter, or at a date taken as the begin-
ning of Spring, and occasionally after Harvest. The beginning after
Yule (taken as at or near the Winter Solstice) was used by the
Dunedain in the North-kingdom, and eventually was adopted by the
Hobbits. The Wild Hobbits were said to have begun their year with
the New Moon nearest the beginning of Spring. The settled Hobbits
for some time began their year after Harvest, or after the introduction
of regular fixed months on October the first. A trace of this was left in
the keeping of October 1 as a minor festival m the Shire and Bree.)
The Dunedain altered these arrangements. Being mortal if
long-lived the actual 'sunround' or year was their natural unit.
They required therefore a system in which months had the same
length from year to year. Also they much favoured the number
seven. The following was the system used in Numenor, and after
the Downfall in the North-kingdom, and also in Gondor until
the end of the line of Kings: it is called, therefore, King's Reck-
oning.
The year had 365 days; there were 12 months, normally of 30
days each; but the months on either side of the mid-year and the
year's-end had 31 (in our terms January, June, July, December).
The 183rd day or Midyear Day belonged to no month. Every
fourth year, except in the last year of a century, there were two
Midyear Days. From this system the Shire-reckoning, described
below, was derived.
But in Gondor later, in the time of the Stewards, the length of
the months was equalized. Each month had 30 days, but
between June 30 and July 1 were inserted 5 days, called the
Summer Days. These were usually a time of holiday. The mid-
dle or third of these days, the 183rd of the year, was called
Midyear Day and was a festival. As before, it was doubled in
every fourth year (except the hundredth year of a century). This
was called the Steward's Reckoning, and was usual in nearly all
countries where the Common Speech was used (except among
Elves, who used it only in their dealings with Men).
The Hobbits, however, remained conservative, and continued
to use a form of King's Reckoning adapted to fit their own cus-
toms. Their months were all equal and had 30 days, but they
had three Summer Days, called in the Shire the Lithe or the
Lithedays between June and July; and two Yuledays, the last of
the old year. and the first of the new year. So that in effect
January, June, July, December still had 31 days, but the Lithe-
days and Yuledays were not counted in the month (January 1st
was the second and not the first day of the year). Every fourth
year, except in the last year of the century,* there were four
Lithedays. The Lithedays and the Yuledays were the chief holi-
(* Earlier it had been the first year of the century, for it so happened
that Hobbits adopted King's Reckoning in the last year of a Dunedain
century, probably Third Age 1300, which became the first year of their
reckoning. But as Shire Reckoning 1 was found to correspond to
King's Reckoning 1601 things were later adjusted to fit in with King's
Reckoning.)
days and times of feasting. The additional Litheday added after
Midyear Day (and so the 184th day of the longer years) was
called Overlithe and was a day of special merrymaking. In full
'Yuletide' was fourteen days long, the last week of the old and
the first of the new year (from December 25 to January 6 inclu-
sive), but the two middle days of the period, Yearsend or
Oldyear's Day, and Yearsday or Newyear's Day were the great
Yuledays.
The Hobbits introduced one small but notable innovation,
the 'Shire-reform'....
The text continues without significant change from that of D 1
(p. 121), with the same page-reference to the text F 2 of the Appendix
on Languages (see note 2), and without the Quenya names of the
months which are given in Appendix D (RK p. 388). In the list of
Hobbit month-names Yulemath (as well as Harvest(math)) is now
included as being current in the East Farthing as well as in Bree, and
the Shire-name of May becomes Thrimidge, as in Bree, with the note
'formerly written Thrimich and archaically Thrimilch'. The expla-
nation of the name Winterfilth is altered, 'the name had probably
originally meant the filling or completion of winter, or rather of the
year leading up to the entry of winter', the precise meaning of which
is obscure to me (see note 4).
Following the list of month-names and the notes on them the text
D 2 continues:
I have not ventured to use these actual unfamiliar names in
the course of the narrative; but it must be understood that the
reference is always to the Shire Calendar, even where 'Shire-
reckoning' is not specified, as it sometimes is. Thus the points
essential to the turn of the years S.R.1418, 1419 are that Octo-
ber 1418 has only 30 days; while January 1st is the second day
of 1419, and February 1419 has 30 days. In consequence Bilbo's
birthday September 22nd being the 99th and not the 100th day
from the year-end corresponds to our September 23rd; February
1st corresponds to our February 1st, but 29, 30 to our March
1, 2; and the date of the downfall of Baraddur and Sauron, S.R.
March 25, corresponds to our March 27th.
The Hobbit week was taken from the Dunedain, and the
names were translations of the names given to the week-days in
the old North-kingdom, those in turn deriving from the Eldar.
These names were at that time almost universal among users of
the Common Speech, though there were some local variations.
The six-day week of the Eldar had days dedicated to, or
named after, the Stars, the Sun, the Moon, the Two Trees,* the
Heavens, and the Valar or Powers, in this order, the last day
being the chief or high day of the week. Their Quenya names
were: Elenya, Anarya, Isilya, Aldarya, Menelya, Valarya (or
Tarinar). The Noldorin names were [Argiliath >] Argilion,
Aranor, Arithil, [Argelaid >] Argaladath, Arvenel (-fenel,
-mhenel), Arvelain (or Ardorin).(9)
The Dunedain kept the dedications and order, but altered the
fourth day to Argalad 'Tree-day' with reference to the Elder
Tree only, of which the White Tree that grew in the King's Court
in Numenor was a descendant. Also, desiring a seventh day, and
being the greatest of mariners, they inserted a 'sea-day' Aroeren
(Quenya Earenya) after the Heavens' day.
The Hobbits took over this arrangement ...
The text then follows that of D 1 (p. 123) almost exactly in the
account of the names of the days of the week in the Hobbit calendar,
but the Red Book spellings of Sterrendei and Hihdei are given as Star-
day and Hiday (or Highday). Starday was then changed to Sterday,
with the note: 'The spelling Stirday, sometimes found in the Red Book,
was due to the forgetting of the meaning of the name. Sterday, which
began the week, was popularly supposed to be connected with
"stirring" after the holiday of Highday.'
D 2 then concludes thus:
I have translated these names also into our familiar names,
and in deciding which name to equate with which modern name
I have observed not the Hobbit order (beginning with Sterday),
but the meanings. Thus since Sunday and Munday are prac-
tically identical with our Sunday and Monday and have the
same 'dedications' in the same order, I have equated these and
taken the rest in the same order as they stand in the Shire list:
thus Hobbit 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 have been translated by our 7, 1,
2, 3, 4, 5, 6. It must be remembered, however, that the associ-
ations of the weekday names will thus be different: Saturday, for
instance, will correspond closely in Hobbit-custom with our
Monday, while Friday will correspond as closely as anything in
the Shire did with Sunday.
The Overlithe or Leapday does not concern the Red Book
since it did not occur in any of the important years in the story
(* The Two Trees of Valinor, Silpion of silver (the Elder), and
Laurelin of gold (the Younger), which gave light to the Blessed Realm.)
of the Great Ring. It occurred in the year before Bilbo went to
the Lonely Mountain, namely in 1340; it had been missed out
in 1400,* the year before his Farewell Party (1401), and so had
not occurred from 1396 to 1404. The only years dealt with in
the Red Book in which it occurred were 1420, the famous
Harvest, and 1436. No doubt the merrymaking of Overlithe in
1420 was as marvellous as everything else in that marvellous
year, but it is not mentioned specially by Master Samwise. He
had many other things to think about, and his brief account of
them has not been enlarged upon. The book ends before the
Lithe of 1436.
On the assumption, which I feel sure is correct, that D 2 belongs to
very much the same time as D 1, my father quickly became dissatisfied
with his first account of the antecedents of the Hobbit calendar (which
itself remained virtually unchanged throughout). In the Eldarin calen-
dar he now introduced the words yen and quantien, both meaning a
hundred of our years (coranari 'sun-rounds'), but retained the essen-
tial structure described in D 1 of 366 days to the year, divided into six
months alternating between 30 and 31 days, with a reduction of all
months to 30 days in every eighth year, these being called 'Short
Years'. On the other hand, he altered the Eldarin treatment of the last
four years of the century: whereas in D 1 (p. 120) a day was simply
rejected at the very end of the century, in D 2 two were added, one at
the beginning and one at the end of the century (see note 8).
The Numenorean calendar was more radically changed. In D 1
there were 12 months of 30 days each in a year of 365 days, with a
period of 5 days (standing outside the months) called 'the Summer
Days' between June 30 and July 1, the third of these being called
'Midyear's Day'. Every fourth year was a leap-year with six 'Summer
Days' including two 'Midyear's Days'. From this calendar that of the
Hobbits was derived, with the 5 'extra' days dispersed into 3 'Summer
Days' ('Lithedays') and 2 'Yuledays', the leap-year day being 'Over-
lithe'.
In D 2, on the other hand, the Numenorean calendar had 8 months
of 30 days and 4 months of 31 (January, June, July, December), requir-
ing only one 'extra' day, Midyear Day, standing outside the months,
this (as in D 1) being doubled every fourth year. This was called 'King's
(* The determination of the centuries was ultimately taken from the
reckoning of the Dunedain. For though 'Shire-reckoning' only began
with the settlement of the Shire, it was found that this had occurred in
year 1601 of the Third Age according to King's Reckoning. To convert
S.R. years into T.A. years one therefore adds 1600. Bree-years began
300 years earlier than Shire-years.)
Reckoning'. Despite this alteration of the Numenorean calendar the
Hobbit calendar (unchanged from D 1) is still, rather curiously,
derived from it: for my father explained (p. 128) that they did 'in
effect' retain the four 31-day months in the two Yuledays (January,
December) and two Lithedays (June, July, on either side of Midyear's
Day), although these in the Hobbit calendar were not counted in the
months.
A further innovation in D 2 is the later revision of the calendar
in Gondor, 'in the time of the Stewards', when the months were all
reduced to 30 days, with 5 inserted 'Summer Days'. This was called
'Steward's Reckoning', and was widely adopted - but not by the
Hobbits. 'Steward's Reckoning' is of course a reversion to the original
Numenorean calendar in D 1 - which was the source of that of the
Hobbits.
In Appendix D the conservative nature of the Hobbit calendar was
retained, being a form of the King's Reckoning rather than of the
reformed Steward's Reckoning, but these were again altered. The
precise relations can best be understood from the actual texts, but the
following is an attempt to summarise the essential differences.
D 1. Numenorean: all months of 30 days, 5 'Summer Days' outside
the months. Hobbit calendar derived from this, with 2 Yule-
days and 3 Lithedays outside the months.
D 2. Numenorean 'King's Reckoning': 4 months of 31 days, Midyear
Day outside the months. Hobbit calendar derived from this.
Numenorean 'Steward's Reckoning': all months of 30 days, 5
'Summer Days' outside the months. Not adopted by Hobbits.
Appendix D Numenorean 'Kings' Reckoning': 2 months of 31 days,
with 3 days outside the months (yestare, loende, mettare at
the beginning, middle, and end of the year). Hobbit calendar
(still as in D 1, D 2) derived from this.
Numenorean 'Stewards' Reckoning': introduced by Mardil: all
months of 30 days, with 2 further days outside the months
(tuilere, yaviere, at end of March and September) added. Not
adopted by Hobbits.
In D 2 there is no reference to the introduction of a new calendar in
Third Age 3019 (S.R.1419), the year of the fall of Barad-dur and the
coronation of King Elessar, beginning on March 25 (RK p. 390); but
in D 1 there is such a reference (p. 121, footnote) to a new reckoning,
the year beginning, however, in the autumn: 'The settled Hobbits
for a time began their year after Harvest, roughly October 1st.... In
Gondor after the downfall of Baraddur a new era was begun with that
day reckoned as the first day of its first year.'
My father wrote two statements at this time on the subject of the
new reckoning, differently arranged but virtually identical in content:
I give the second version, which is somewhat clearer.
New Era.
Gondor Calendar of the Fourth Age. After the downfall of
Sauron and the return of the King, a new calendar was devised
in Gondor and adopted throughout the realm and in all the
westlands. This was calculated to begin on the day of the fall of
Barad-dur. That took place in Third Age 3019 (Shire-reckoning
1419), on March 25th according to Shire-reckoning, King's
reckoning, and the Elvish calendars (March 27th in our calen-
dar, and March 26th in Steward's reckoning).(10)
In honour of the Halflings (Hobbits) their week-day Sunday
(for 25 March) was taken for the first week-day of the first year
of the New Era, and so became also the first day of every week.
Also the 'Shire-reform' was adopted, by which Midyear's Day
had no weekday name, so that weekday names remained fixed
in relation to dates, and each year began on a Sunday (Anarya)
and ended on a Saturday (Elenya).
The calendar of months and seasons was also entirely
reformed. The year now began with Spring (25 March old
style). It was divided into five seasons: two long (three months),
and three short (two months): Spring (April, May); Summer
(June, July, August); Autumn or Harvest (September, October);
Winter (November, December, January); Stirring (February,
March).*
Each month was 30 days long. There were thus 5 days (or in
Leap-years 6) outside the months. These were: 2 'Spring-days'
before April 1st, which began the new year, and were festivals.+
'Midyear's Day' fell between September and October and
became now a harvest festival. In Leap-years this Day was
doubled. The year ended with 2 'Stirring-days' after March 30:
these days were days of preparation for the New Year and of
commemoration of the dead and fallen.
Dates were usually given in official documents by the Sea-
sons, but the old month-names (Common-speech, Noldorin
or Quenya) remained in private and popular use, though their
(* When the year was divided into two halves, Winter was held to
run from October to Year's end, and Summer from Year's beginning to
the end of September.)
(+ The first Spring-Day and the first day of the Year was especially the
commemoration of the fall of Sauron, since it corresponded to 25
March in earlier reckoning.)
incidence was somewhat altered: they began and ended earlier
in the year than in older calendars.
On the reverse of the page carrying the first of these accounts of the
calendar of the New Era is a table made at the same time; this was
struck out and replaced by another, identical in all essentials, and this
latter I have redrawn (p. 134). In this table the first column of figures
refers to actual dates (with the five days standing outside the months
numbered 1 and 1, 2); thus the five figures given for Tuile (Spring),
1, 2, 1, 1, 30, refer respectively to the two Tuilear (Springdays), 1
(Entare) and 2; the first day of Viresse (April 1); the first day of Lotesse
(May 1); and the last day of Lotesse (May 30). The second column of
figures is the cumulative total of days in each season corresponding to
those in the first column: thus 1 Lotesse is the 33rd day of the year
(2 Tuilear, Viresse 30 days, Lotesse 1, = 33).
In Appendix D this elegantly balanced structure had been aban-
doned and replaced by a different system, somewhat obscurely
recounted. But it seems extremely probable that it was here, in this
original account of the calendar of the New Era, that the Quenya
names of the months first entered. It will be seen that the names given
in Appendix D are all present except that of February, Nenime, which
is here Nendesse; while the opening day of the year is Entare (on the
first form of the table written Entale and then changed) for later
Yestare, and Midyear's Day is Arendien for later Loende. The changed
names were written onto the table later, probably much later.
On the back of the second table, and clearly intended to be con-
tinuous with it, is the following.
Alternative names.(11)
Autumn: Endien (Midyear).
April: Ertuile October: Lasselanta (Noquelle)
May: Notuile November: Errive
June: Ellaire December: Norrive
July: Nolaire January: Meterrive
August: Metelaire February: Ercoire
September: Erquelle March: Nocoire
The Noldorin month names and seasons corresponding were:
Spring: Ethuil: April Gwirith. May Lothron.
Summer: Loer: June Norui. July Cerfeth. August Urui
Autumn: Firith: September Ifonneth. October Narbeleth.
Winter: Rhiw: November Hithui. December Girithron.
January Nerwinien.
Stirring: Echuir: February Nenneth. March Gwaeron.
Occasional variants: Autumn: [Dant, Dantilais >] Dannas,
Lasbelin. June: Ebloer. July: Cadloer. December: Ephriw.
January: Cathriw.
The old Year beginning corresponded to N[ew] E[ra] January
8, the 68th day of Winter, and 281st day of the year.
The old Midyear corresponded to N.E. July 6, the 36th day
of Summer, and 98th day of the year.
The old Year's-end corresponded to N.E. January 7, the 67th
day of Winter, and 280th day of the year.
The Shire Lithedays = N.E. July 5, 6, 7
The old Gondor Summerdays = N.E. July 4 - 8 inclusive.
Here the Noldorin (Sindarin) names first appear, and are the same
as those given in Appendix D, with two exceptions: Nerwinien for
Narwain (January) and Nenneth for Ninui (February). Narwain and
Ninui were written in much later, together with the following changes:
Metelaire, Meterrive > Mettelaire, Metterrive; Cerfeth > Cerveth;
Ifonneth > Ivanneth; Loer > Laer, Ebloer > Eblaer, Cadloer >
Cadlaer.
Together with many other tables of comparative reckoning, some
beautifully made, this effectively completes all the calendar material
that I can certainly identify as belonging to this primary phase of my
father's work on the subject. It is remarkable that (amid abundant but
very rough and difficult notes) there is no further text until the type-
script (itself rough and a good deal emended) from which the text of
Appendix D was printed.(12) It seems very unlikely that any intervening
text should have been lost, and I am inclined to think that my father
was still developing and refining his theory of the Calendars when the
need to submit his text to the publishers became imperative and
urgent. Of the final form I believe that what I said of Appendix F, that
'had circumstances been otherwise the form of that appendix would
have been markedly different' (p. 82), can be repeated of Appendix D
with greater force.(13)
NOTES.
1. I have added the final 6, absent in the manuscript.
2. As noted on p. 119 this is a reference to the manuscript F 2 of the
Appendix on Languages, pp. 38 - 9, $$23-4. The sentence at the
end of $24, 'But most remarkable of all are the Hobbit month-
names, concerning which see the note on Calendar and Dates',
was an addition, but one made with care near to the time of writ-
ing of F 2 - no doubt when my father reached this point in D 1.
3. Rethe was not the original name. On the back of this page of the
manuscript is a comparative table, struck through, of Hobbit
dates and modern dates by month and day; and the third month
is here Luyde, not Rethe. Luyde occurs also in one of the Pro-
logue texts (see p. 9), but I have not found it anywhere else; nor
have I found any other names preceding those in the list given
here, which survived without change.
4. Winterfylleth was the Old English name of October. Its meaning
was discussed by Bede (died 735), who explained the name by
reference to the ancient English division of the year into two parts
of six months each, Summer and Winter: Winterfylleth was so
called because it was the first month of Winter, but fylleth, Bede
supposed, referred to the full moon of October, marking the
beginning of that period of the year. My father's interpretation of
the name in D 1, 'the filling (completion) of the year', 'winter'
being used in the sense 'year', is at variance both with Bede and
apparently with that in the published text (RK p. 388, footnote),
'the filling or completion of the year before Winter'. In either case
it must be supposed that the 'true' words underlying translated
'filth' and 'Winterfilth' could make the same pun!
On the former beginning of the Hobbit year after Harvest see
p. 121, footnote.
5. The Great Writ of Tuckborough (later the Yearbook of Tuck-
borough) is mentioned also in the Appendix on Languages, p. 40,
$27.
6. The words '(in spoken form)' refer to the spelling Munday. In the
published text the sentence reads: 'In the language of the time
of the War of the Ring these had become Sterday, Sunday,
Monday ...', instead of 'had become written', thus avoiding the
question of Munday, Monday: the latter being a mere peculiarity
of English spelling, as in many other words with the vowel of but,
as monk, son, etc. Sunday was once often spelt Sonday. - So also
Hiday of D 1 is given the modern spelling Highday in the pub-
lished text. But in the list of archaic (Old English) forms it should
not be Highdei but Hihdei, as in D 1.
7. Contrast Appendix D (RK p. 384): 'the merrymaking in that year
[1420] is said to have been the greatest in memory or record.'
8. The different computation in D 1 (p. 120), whereby the Eldarin
calendar would have 36525 days in a century (leading to the
removal of the last day of a century) was reached thus: the last
four years of a century were computed as half of an eight-year
cycle, that is 2922 (seven long years and one short year) divided
by two, 1461. Added to the total (35064) of the days in 96 years
this made 36525. In D 2 the last four years are not half of an
eight-year cycle but three full years and one short year, that is
35064 + 1458 in a century, total 36522 (leading to the addition
of the two extra days outside the structure of weeks and months,
Quantdrie and Vinydrie).
9. I have found no further list of the Elvish names of the days of the
week, nor any mention of individual names, before the third (and
final) text, from which Appendix D was printed (see p. 136).
There, the Quenya names of the fourth and sixth days, Aldarya
and Valarya, were still in that form (but Tarion had replaced
Tarinar); my father emended them very clearly, on both copies of
the typescript, to Aldauya and Valanya. On the proof of the first
of these was printed Aldanya, and he emended this to Alduya, as
it appears in Appendix D.
On the use of 'Noldorin' for 'Sindarin' see the Appendix on
Languages, especially p. 36, $18, and commentary, pp. 65-6.
These month-names next reappear in the final typescript, already
changed to Orgilion, Oranor, Orithil, Orgaladhad, Ormenel,
Orebelain (or Rodyn); and similarly with the name of the
'Sea-day' added by the Numenoreans, changed from Aroeren to
Oraearon.
10. In the Eldarin calendar (p. 126), in the long (normal) years,
January had 31 days and February 30; thus March 25th was the
86th day of the year. In the Gondorian King's Reckoning (p. 131)
the same was true. In the Shire Reckoning Yuleday preceded
January 1, but both January and February had 30 days, so that
March 25 was again the 86th day of the year.
In the Gondorian Steward's Reckoning (p. 132), on the other
hand, the count is simply 30 days in January and 30 days in
February, so that March 25 is the 85th day of the year; while in
our calendar 31 + 28 + 25 makes March 25 the 84th day.
11 Some of these alternative names are included in the first form of
the table, with the difference that Errive and Norive (so spelt) are
alternatives respectively for Ringare (December) and Narvinye
(January).
12. It is a curious point that this typescript begins with the printed
'Shire Calendar for use in all years' exactly as it appears in
Appendix D (RK p. 384): my father's typescript begins below it
('Every year began on the first day of the week ...'), and the same
is true of the carbon copy. Presumably this calendar was printed
first and separately and copies were sent to my father, who used
them in this way.
The manuscript calendar from which this was printed is
extant, and it is interesting to see that on the left-hand side there
is a column headed 'Weekday' with the names of the days of the
week set out against each of the three transverse groups of
months, thus for example in the second month Solmath:
Stirday - 5 12 19 26
Sunday - 6 13 20 27
Munday - 7 14 21 28
Trewsday 1 8 15 22 29
and so on. This column of the days of the week would have made
the calendar easier to understand; but on the manuscript it is
struck through, by whom is not clear. I can see no reason for this
but that of space on the page, which one would think could have
been quite easily accommodated. - This manuscript table
undoubtedly goes back to the original phase of my father's work
on the calendars, described in this chapter.
13. Among various alterations made by my father on the proof, it
may be noted that the text of Appendix D as first printed ended
thus: 'Some said that it was old Sam Gardner's birthday, some
that it was the day on which the Golden Tree first flowered in
1420, and some that it was the Elves' New Year. The last was
(more or less) true, so all may have been.'
V.
THE HISTORY OF THE AKALLABETH.
The development of Appendix B, The Tale of Years, was naturally
associated with and dependent on that of Appendix A, which as pub-
lished bears the title Annals of the Kings and Rulers. But more unex-
pectedly, the Tale of Years of the Second Age was closely associated
with the evolution of the history of Numenor and of the Akallabeth.
In the presentation of the early forms of these Appendices I have
found after trial and error that the best course is to divide the Tale
of Years into two parts, the Second and the Third Ages, and to treat
them separately; and also, to introduce at this point an account of
the Akallabeth, followed by the Tale of Years of the Second Age in
Chapter VI.
In the History of Middle-earth I have given no indication of how
this work, a primary narrative of the Second Age, developed to the
form given in the published Silmarillion, or when it first came into
being. The early history of the legend, closely related to the abandoned
story The Lost Road, was studied in Volume V, where the two original
narratives of The Fall of Numenor, which I called FN I and FN II,
were printed (V.13 ff.). In Sauron Defeated (IX.331 ff.) I gave a third
version, FN III, which I have ascribed to a fairly early stage in the
writing of The Lord of the Rings. The massive development of the
legend in the work called The Drowning of Anadune, closely associ-
ated with The Notion Club Papers and the emergence of the Adunaic
language, was studied in Sauron Defeated, where I ascribed it to the
first half of 1946 (IX.147, 389-90): this dating was subsequently con-
firmed by the observation of John Rateliff that W. H. Lewis recorded
in his diary that my father read the work to the Inklings in August
1946 (Foreword to Morgoth's King, X.x).
In my commentary on The Drowning of Anadune I indicated and
discussed at many points its relationship to the Akallabeth, but for the
text of the latter I made use only of the final form, as printed in The
Silmarillion, pp. 259 ff. Since the writing of the Akallabeth evidently
post-dated the writing of The Lord of the Rings I postponed dis-
cussion of its history, but I found no room for it in the very long books
Morgoth's Ring and The War of the Jewels.
I did, however, in Sauron Defeated make an extraordinary mis-
statement on the subject of the Akallabeth, which must be repaired.
When discussing (IX.406) my father's late note on The Drowning of
Anadune, in which he referred it to 'Mannish tradition', I said:
The handwriting and the use of a ball-point pen suggest a relatively
late date, and were there no other evidence I would guess it to be
some time in the 1960s. But it is certain that what appears to have
been the final phase of my father's work on Numenor (A Descrip-
tion of Numenor, Aldarion and Erendis) dates from the mid-1960s
(Unfinished Tales pp. 7 - 8);(1) and it may be that the Akallabeth
derives from that period also.
This last remark is patent nonsense. The great extension of the line of
the Numenorean kings, which entered in the course of the develop-
ment of the Akallabeth, was present in Appendix A (and a mere glance
through the texts of the work is sufficient to show, simply from their
appearance, that they could not conceivably date from so late a time).
How I came to write this I do not know, nor how it escaped all sub-
sequent checking and revision. I perhaps meant to say that my father's
note on The Drowning of Anadune may have derived from the same
period as Aldarion and Erendis.
When I wrote Sauron Defeated I was nonetheless not at all clear
about the time of the original writing of the Akallabeth, and I assumed
without sufficient study of the texts that it was later than it proves
to be.
The textual history is relatively brief and simple in itself. The
earliest text, which I will call A, is a clear manuscript of 23 pages; a
good deal of this text is extant also in pages that were rejected and
written out again, but virtually nothing of any significance entered in
the rewriting, and the two layers of this manuscript need not be given
different letters.
My father then corrected A, fairly extensively in the earlier part,
very little in the story of the Downfall, and made a second text, a type-
script, which I will call B. He followed the corrected manuscript with
an uncharacteristic fidelity, introducing only a very few changes as he
typed. It cannot be demonstrated, but I think it virtually certain, that
the series A, A corrected, B, belong to the same time; and there is
usually no need to distinguish the stages of this 'first phase', which can
be conveniently referred to as AB.
After some considerable interval, as I judge, he returned to the type-
script B and emended it. This left the greater part of the text
untouched, but introduced a vast extension into Numenorean history:
primarily by the insertion of a long rider in manuscript, but also by
transpositions of text, alteration of names, and the rewriting of certain
passages.
The third and final text (C) was an amanuensis typescript (in top
copy and carbon) taken from B when all alterations had been made to
it. It seems to me very probable that this was made at the same time
(?1958) as the typescripts of the Annals of Aman, the Grey Annals,
and the text LQ 2 of the Quenta Silmarillion (see X.300, XI.4). To
this typescript my father made only a very few and as it were casual
corrections.
The alterations (including the long inserted rider) made to B con-
stitute a 'second phase'; and this is the final form of the Akallabeth
(apart from the few corrections to C just mentioned). There are thus
only two original texts, the manuscript A and the typescript B, but
the corrections and extensions made to B represent a significantly
different 'layer' in the history of the work. To make this plain I will
call the typescript B as subsequently altered B 2.
While the development of the Akallabeth is of much interest in
particular features, a very great deal of the text never underwent any
significant change; and as I noted in IX.376, something like three-
fifths of the precise wording of the second text of The Drowning of
Anadune (which was printed in full in that book) survived in the
Akallabeth. Moreover the final form of the Akallabeth, if with
some editorial alteration, is available in The Silmarillion. In order to
avoid an enormous amount of simple repetition, therefore, I use
the Silmarillion text, which I will refer to as SA ('Silmarillion-
Akallabeth'), as the basis from which to work back, so to speak,
rather than working forward from A. To do this I have numbered the
paragraphs in SA throughout, and refer to them by these numbers,
together with the opening words to aid in their identification.
The Silmarillion text was of course that of B 2 (with the corrections
made in C), but as I have said a number of editorial changes were
made, for various reasons, but mostly in the quest (somewhat exces-
sively pursued, as I now think) for coherence and consistency with
other writings. Unless these changes were trivial they are noticed in the
account that follows.
I do not here go into the relations of the Akallabeth to its sources
(The Drowning of Anadune, and to a more minor degree the third
version of The Fall of Numenor, FN III), since these are fully available
in Sauron Defeated, where also the most crucial developments were
extensively discussed.
The original title in the manuscript A was The Fall of Numenor,
which was corrected to The Downfall of Numenor and so remained:
none of the texts bears the title Akallabeth, but my father referred to
the work by that name (cf. p. 255).
$$1-2. The original opening of A was almost a simple copy of the
opening of FN HI (IX.331-2): 'In the Great Battle when Fionwe son
of Manwe overthrew Morgoth', etc.; but this was at once rejected,
though appearing in revised form in SA $3, and a new opening
substituted, which constitutes, with some editorial changes, that in
SA ($$1-2). The authentic text begins: Of Men, AElfwine, it is said
by the Eldar that they came into the world in the time of the Shadow
of Morgoth ...', and in SA I removed the address to AElfwine.(2) The
Akallabeth was conceived as a tale told by Pengolod the Wise (as it
must be supposed, though he is not named) in Tol Eressea to
AElfwine of England, as becomes again very explicit (in the original)
at the end; and no change was made in this respect in the 'second
phase' B 2, nor on the final amanuensis typescript C.(3)
In $1 I also altered the sentence 'and the Noldor named them the
Edain' to 'The Edain these were named in the Sindarin tongue'; on
this change see under $9 below.
In $2, Earendil's ship was named Vingilot in AB, but this was
changed to the otherwise unrecorded Ealote in B 2; in SA I reverted
to Vingilot. The name Rothinzil is derived from The Drowning of
Anadune.(4)
$3. In the Great Battle ... The opening of this paragraph in AB
read:
In the Great Battle when at last Fionwe son of Manwe overthrew
Morgoth and Thangorodrim was broken, the Edain fought for
the Valar, whereas other kindreds of Men fought for Morgoth.
This was changed in B 2 to read:
In the Great Battle when at last Eonwe herald of Manwe over-
threw Morgoth and Thangorodrim was broken, the Edain alone
of the kindreds of Men fought for the Valar, whereas many others
fought for Morgoth.
In SA the reference to Eonwe was removed; and similarly later in the
paragraph 'refusing alike the summons of [Fionwe >] Eonwe and of
Morgoth' was changed to 'refusing alike the summons of the Valar
and of Morgoth'. The reason for this lay in the treatment of the last
chapter of the Quenta Silmarillion in the published work. The only
narrative of the Great Battle at the end of the First Age (V.326 ff.)
derived from the time when the Children of the Valar were an
important conception, and Fionwe son of Manwe was the leader
and commanding authority in the final war against Morgoth and
his overthrow; but the abandonment of that conception, and the
change in the 'status' of Fionwe / Eonwe to that of Manwe's herald
led to doubt whether my father, had he ever returned to a real
retelling of the story of the end of the Elder Days (see XI.245-7),
would have retained Eonwe in so mighty and elemental a role.
His part was in consequence somewhat diminished by omissions
and ambiguous wording (as may be seen by comparing the text in
Vol.V with that of the published Silmarillion; cf. also the editorial
addition made to the Valaquenta, X.203). There is however no
evidence for this supposition, and I now believe it to have been a
mistaken treatment of the original text, and so also here in the
Akallabeth.(5)
$4. But Manwe put forth Morgoth ... In this paragraph my father
was still closely following FN III (IX.332), but at the end, after
'Andor, the Land of Gift' he turned to The Drowning of Anadune,
which was thereafter the primary source, though with some inter-
weaving of passages from FN III. In FN III the passage concerning
Morgoth, originally written in the present tense, was corrected to
the past tense, and this was followed in A; but it is curious that in
B my father reverted in one of the phrases to the present: 'and he
cannot himself return again into the World, present and visible,
while the Lords of the West are still enthroned.' This was retained
in SA.
After the words 'life more enduring than any others of mortal
race have possessed' I omitted in SA the following sentence in the
original: 'Thrice that of Men of Middle-earth was the span of their
years, and to the descendants of [Hurin the Steadfast >] Hador the
Fair even longer years were granted, as later is told.' This omission,
scarcely necessary, was made on account of divergent statements on
the subject (see Unfinished Tales p. 224, note 1). The erroneous
reference to Hurin, surviving from FN III (see IX.332 and note 1),
was only corrected in B 2.
In the original manuscript A the words of FN III concerning
Eressea were retained: 'and that land was named anew Avallon; for
it is hard by Valinor and within sight of the shores of the Blessed
Realm.' This was corrected to the text that appears in SA ('and there
is in that land a haven that is named Avallone ...'). On this see
further under $12 below.
$5. Then the Edain set sail ... The original opening of this para-
graph, not subsequently changed, was:
Then the Edain gathered all the ships, great and small, that they
had built with the help of the Elves, and those that were willing
to depart took their wives and their children and all such wealth
as they possessed, and they set sail upon the deep waters, follow-
ing the Star.
I cannot now say with certainty why this passage (derived from The
Drowning of Anadune, IX.360, $12) was omitted from SA: possibly
on account of a passage in the 'Description of Numenor', not
included in the extracts given in Unfinished Tales, in which the ships
of the migration are described as Elvish:
The legends of the foundation of Numenor often speak as if all
the Edain that accepted the Gift set sail at one time and in one
fleet. But this is only due to the brevity of the narrative. In more
detailed histories it is related (as might be deduced from the
events and the numbers concerned) that after the first expedition,
led by Elros, many other ships, alone or in small fleets, came west
bearing others of the Edain, either those who were at first reluc-
tant to dare the Great Sea but could not endure to be parted from
those who had gone, or some who were far scattered and could
not be assembled to go with the first sailing.
Since the boats that were used were of Elvish model, fleet but
small, and each steered by one of the Eldar deputed by Cirdan, it
would have taken a great navy to transport all the people and
goods that were eventually brought from Middle-earth to
Numenor. The legends make no guess at the numbers, and the
histories say little. The fleet of Elros is said to have contained
many ships (according to some a hundred and fifty vessels, to
others two or three hundred) and to have brought 'thousands' of
the men, women, and children of the Edain: probably between
five thousand or at the most ten thousand. But the whole process
of migration appears in fact to have occupied at least fifty years,
possibly longer, and finally ended only when Cirdan (no doubt
instructed by the Valar) would provide no more ships or guides.
In this paragraph is the first appearance of the name Elenna ('Star-
wards') of Numenor.
$6. This was the beginning of that people ... In the first sentence
the words 'that people that in the Grey-elven speech are called the
Dunedain' were an editorial alteration from 'that people that the
Noldor call the Dunedain'.(6) Cf. the similar change made in $1, and
see under $9.
$7. Of old the chief city and haven ... Following the words 'it was
called Andunie because it faced the sunset' A had originally the
following passage:
But the high place of the King was at Numenos in the heart of the
land, and there was the tower and citadel that was built by Elros
son of Earendil, whom the Valar appointed to be the first king of
the Dunedain.
Numenos survived from FN III (IX.333) and earlier (see V.25, $2).
This was replaced in B by the passage in SA: 'But in the midst of
the land was a mountain tall and steep, and it was named the
Meneltarma,' etc. The name of the city was given here, however, as
Arminaleth (the name in The Drowning of Anadune), with a note:
'This is the Numenorean name, for by that name it was chiefly
known, Tar Kalimos in the Eldarin tongue.' In B 2 the name was
changed here (and at the subsequent occurrences) from Arminaleth
to Armenelos, and the note changed to read: 'Arminaleth was the
form of the name in the Numenorean tongue; but it was called by
its Eldarin name Armenelos until the coming of the Shadow.' Thus
the statement in Index II to Sauron Defeated (IX.460) that Armi-
naleth was 'replaced by Armenelos' is incorrect: Armenelos was a
substitution in the Akallabeth because my father was now asserting
that this was the name by which the city was known through long
ages, but its Adunaic form remained Arminaleth. It was Tar
Kalimos that was replaced by Armenelos. - This note was omitted
in SA.
$8. Now Elros and Elrond his brother ... The words in SA 'were
descended from the Three Houses of the Edain' were an editorial
change from 'were descended from the lines of both Hador and
Beor'. - Near the end of the paragraph, the span of years granted to
Elros was said (in all texts) to have been 'seven times that of the
Men of Middle-earth', but on one copy of C my father changed
'seven' to 'three' and placed an X against the statement that Elros
lived for five hundred years. The reading 'many times' in SA was an
editorial substitution.
$9 Thus the years passed ... In the sentence 'For though this people
used still their own speech, their kings and lords knew and spoke
also the Elven tongue, which they had learned in the days of their
alliance' AB had 'the Noldorin tongue'. Similarly in $$1, 6 it was
said that Edain, Dunedain were Noldorin names, but only in the
present case did my father change (in B 2) 'Noldorin' to 'Elven'.
Thus the old conception that the Noldor in Beleriand retained their
own tongue was still present, as it was also in the original forms of
the Appendices on Languages and Calendars (see p. 138, note 9).
This at once shows a relatively early date for the Akallabeth; and as
noted earlier the adoption of Sindarin by the Exiled Noldor had
already emerged in the Grey Annals (p. 62, $5).
The continuation of the same sentence originally read 'and they
remained in great friendship with the Eldar, whether of Avallon or
of the westlands of Middle-earth', but this was changed to the text
in SA, 'and thus they held converse still with the Eldar, whether of
Eressea', etc. The same removal of the word 'friendship' of the
relations between the Eldar and the Numenoreans is found also in
$$12, 29.
$$10, 11. For the Dunedain became mighty ..., But the Lords of
Valinor ... There were no editorial alterations made to these para-
graphs, which go back with no change of any significance to the
earliest text.
$12. For in those days Valinor still remained ... In A the name of
the Mountain of Numenor was Menelmindon; in FN III it was
Menelmin (IX.335), and Menelmindo, Menelminda occur in The
Notion Club Papers. But Meneltarma is found already in A at a later
point in the narrative.
In A as originally written the name Avallon was still the new
name of the isle of Eressea, but in the rewriting of that passage (see
under $4) it was corrected to Avallone, now the name of the haven
of the Eldar in Eressea. In the present paragraph A had: 'But the
wise among them knew that this distant land was not indeed
Valinor, the Blessed Realm, but was Avallone, the Isle of the Eldar,
easternmost of the Undying Lands'; Avallone was here the form first
written, and thus my father moved from Avallon to Avallone while
writing the manuscript, without however changing the significance
of the name (but see under $75). The text was then altered, to
embody the new conception, but only by changing 'Isle' to 'Haven',
to which in SA I added 'upon Eressea' to make the meaning clear.
(Much of the present passage derives fairly closely from The
Drowning of Anadune, IX.361, $16: on the extremely difficult
question of the meaning of Avalloni in that work see IX.379-80,
385-6.)
In the passage describing the coming of the Eldar to Numenor AB
had:
And thence at times the Firstborn still would come to Numenor
in oarless boats, or as birds flying, for the friendship that was
between the peoples.
The text of SA here is that of B 2, and here again (see $9 above) the
'friendship' of the Eldar and the Numenoreans was removed.
The conclusion of the paragraph provides further clear evidence
of the early date of the Akallabeth. This passage began as an addi-
tion to A (following the words 'for the friendship that was between
the peoples' cited above) as follows, with the changes made to it
shown:
And they brought to Numenor many gifts: birds of song, and
flowers of sweet fragrance and herbs of great virtue. And a
seedling they brought of the White Tree [Nimloth the Fair >]
Galathilion that grew in the [courts of Avallone >] midst of
Eressea, and was in his turn a seedling of the Eldest Tree,
[Galathilion the light of Valinor >] Telperion of many names, the
light of Valinor. And the tree grew and blossomed in the courts of
the King in [Numenos >] Ar-minaleth; Nimloth the fair it was
named, and the night-shadows departed when Nimloth was in
flower.
The history of the names of the White Trees is complex, for several
reasons: the names were applied to the Two Trees of Valinor and
re-used as names for the later trees; the later trees (of Tirion (Tuna),
Eressea, Numenor) entered at different times; and there was shifting
in their applications. It is simplest to consider first the statements
deriving from the major period of work on the Elder Days between
the completion and the publication of The Lord of the Rings.
In the Annals of Aman (X.85, $69) Yavanna gave to the Noldor
of Tuna (Tirion) 'Galathilion, image of the Tree Telperion'. In the
revision of the Quenta Silmarillion from the same period (X.176,
$39) it is said of this tree that 'Yavanna made for them a tree in all
things like a lesser image of Telperion, save that it did not give light
of its own being'; its name is not given. It is also said in the same
version of the Quenta Silmarillion (X.155) that Galathilion, a name
of Telperion, was given also to the White Tree of Tuna, which was
known as 'Galathilion the Less'; and that 'his seedling was named
Celeborn in Eressea, and Nimloth in Numenor, the gift of the Eldar.'
As my father first wrote this addition to A he named the Tree of
Eressea Nimloth, saying that it was 'a seedling of the Eldest Tree,
Galathilion the light of Valinor'; he thus omitted the Tree of Tuna
(Galathilion the Less). He immediately changed the name of the
Tree of Eressea to Galathilion, a seedling of Telperion, and gave the
name Nimloth to the Tree of Numenor. (This shows incidentally
that the addition preceded the writing of the account of the fate of
the Tree of Numenor later in A, for there the name was Nimloth
from the first.)
The passage as emended reappears without any further change in
the second text, the typescript B. But on this text my father struck it
out and rewrote it thus (B 2):
And a seedling they brought of the White Tree that grew in the
midst of Eressea, and was in its turn a seedling of the Tree of
Tuna, Galathilion, that Yavanna gave to the Eldar in the Land of
the Gods to be a memorial of Telperion, Light of Valinor. And the
tree grew and blossomed in the courts of the King in Ar-Minaleth
[> Ar-Menelos]; Nimloth the Fair it was named, and flowered in
the evening and the shadows of night it filled with its fragrance.
Here, in this 'second phase' of the Akallabeth, with the introduction
of the Tree of Tuna (Galathilion), the gift of Yavanna, the same
succession is found as in the Annals of Aman and the contemporary
revision of the Quenta Silmarillion: Telperion of Valinor;
Galathilion of Tuna; [Celeborn] of Eressea; Nimloth of Numenor.
The conclusion is thus inescapable that the first phase (AB) of the
Alkallabeth was earlier than those works (the Annals of Aman, etc.)
that can be dated with sufficient accuracy to 1951.
In SA the passage was slightly rewritten, introducing the name
Celeborn of the Tree of Eressea (X.155) and (unnecessarily) the
word 'image' of the Tree of Tuna from the Annals of Aman (X.85).
In this connection it is interesting to compare the passage in The
Return of the King (p. 250, at the end of the chapter The Steward
and the King) where the finding of the sapling tree on Mount
Mindolluin is recounted. Gandalf's words are:
Verily this is a sapling of the line of Nimloth the fair; and that was
a seedling of Galathilion, and that a fruit of Telperion of many
names, Eldest of Trees.
It will be seen that this agrees with the emended form of the passage
in the first phase (AB) of the Akallabeth: for Galathilion (as the
parent of Nimloth) is here the Tree of Eressea, there is no mention
of the Tree of Tuna, and Galathilion is a 'fruit' of Telperion (not an
'image', or a 'memorial'). The conclusion must be that this passage
was not revised when the Tree of Tuna entered the history.(7)
$13. Thus it was that because of the Ban of the Valar ... The devel-
opment of the opening passage concerning the great voyage is
curious. In The Drowning of Anadune (IX.362, $17) it was said
that the mariners of Numenor sailed 'from the darkness of the
North to the heats of the South, and beyond the South to the Nether
Darkness. And the Eruhin [Numenoreans] came often to the shares
of the Great Lands, and they took pity on the forsaken world of
Middle-earth.' In the Akallabeth, after the words 'to the Nether
Darkness', my father introduced a passage from FN HI (IX.334):
They ranged from Eressea in the West to the shores of Middle-
earth, and came even into the inner seas; and they sailed about the
North and the South and glimpsed from their high prows the
Gates of Morning in the East.
This goes back to the earliest texts of The Fall of Numenor (V.14,
20, 25). But when incorporating it into the Akallabeth he changed
this to 'and they came even into the inner seas, and sailed about
Middle-earth and glimpsed from their high prows the Gates of
Morning in the East' - returning to The Drowning of Anadune with
'And the Dunedain came often to the shores of the Great Lands'
(with 'often' > 'at times' in B 2).
This is the text in SA. It seems altogether impossible to say what
geographical conception of the East of the World lies behind this
passage.
In SA, after the words 'the Numenoreans taught them many
things', the following passage (likewise derived from The Drowning
of Anadune, ibid.) was omitted:
Language they taught them, for the tongues of the Men of
Middle-earth, save in the old lands of the Edain, were fallen into
brutishness, and they cried like harsh birds, or snarled like savage
beasts.
$14. Then the Men of Middle-earth were comforted ... to $17 And
some there were who said ... (SA pp. 263-4). No changes entered
the text in B 2, but two editorial changes were made in $17: for 'the
bliss of the Great' and 'the people of Earth' I substituted 'the bliss
of the Powers' and 'the people of Arda'.
$18. The Eldar reported these words ... A has: 'and he sent
messengers to the Dunedain, who spoke earnestly to the King, Tar-
Atanamir'. My father was closely following The Drowning of
Anadune in this paragraph (IX.364, $23), but in that work the king
was Ar-Pharazon: Tar Atanamir here first appears.(8) See further
under $$24 - 5.
$19. 'The Doom of the World,' they said ... to $23 Then the
Messengers said ... Scarcely any changes, and none that need be
recorded, entered the text in B 2 in this part of the Akallabeth; there
were however some minor editorial alterations made in SA. In $21
there is in the original a complex interchange between 'thou' and
'you' in the reply of the Messengers, according as they are address-
ing the King or referring to the people as a whole, for example:
'thou and thy people are not of the Firstborn, but are mortal Men
as Iluvatar made you', or 'And you, thou sayest, are punished for
the rebellion of Men'. In SA 'you' was employed throughout. In $23
'within the girdle of the Earth' was changed to 'within the Circles of
the World', and 'The love of this Earth' to 'The love of Arda'.
$ $24, 25 These things took place ..., Then Tar-Ancalimon ...
These two paragraphs have to be considered together. AB $24
opened:
These things took place in the days of Tar-Atanamir, and he was
the seventh of those kings that succeeded Elros upon the throne
of Numenor; and that realm had then endured for more than two
thousand years ...
And AB $25 opened:
Then [Kiryatan > Ar-Kiryatan >] Tar-Kiryatan the Shipbuilder,
son of Atanamir, became King, and he was of like mind ...
It would be clear in any case from these new names that a develop-
ment had taken place, or was taking place, in the history of the royal
house of Numenor from that in The Drowning of Anadune; but in
fact there is an extremely interesting isolated page in which my
father set forth the new conception, and it is most convenient to give
this page here.
Second Age
Elros died S.A. 460
King 1. " c. 682
2. " c. 903
3. " c. 1125
4. " c. 1347
5. " c. 1568
6. " c. 1790 [added:] In his day the
Numenoreans aided
Gil-glad in the defeat of
Sauron
7. " c. 2061
In his time the Shadow first fell on Numenor. His name was
Tar-Atanamir. To him came messages from the Valar, which
he rejected. [Added:] He clung to life for an extra 50 years.
8. died S.A. c. 2233
In his time first began the division of the folk between the
King's folk and the Nimruzirim (9) (Elendilli) or Elf-friends.
The King's folk and Royal House cease to learn or use Elvish
speech and are more usually known by their Numenorean
names. This king was Tar-Kiryatan (Shipwright) or in
Numenorean Ar-Balkumagan. Settlements of dominion in
Middle-earth begin.
9. died S.A. c. 2454
Estrangement of Elf-friends and King's Men deepens. The
King makes the Elf-friends dwell in East, and their chief place
becomes Romenna. Many depart to settle on shores of N.W.
of Middle-earth. The King's folk as a rule go further south.
10. died S.A. c. 2676
11. " c. 2897
12. " c. 3118.
Power but not bliss of Numenor reaches zenith.
13 and last Tarkalion or Arpharazon. Challenges Sauron
and lands at Umbar 3125
Downfall of Numenor 3319.
General aspects of this text are discussed later (pp.171-2 and note
4). There can be no doubt that it is a scheme that my father had
beside him when writing the original manuscript A of the
Akallabeth. For the moment, it can be observed that, as in A,
Atanamir (to whom the Messengers came) was the father of
Kiryatan; and that when my father wrote in A that Atanamir 'was
the seventh of those kings that succeeded Elros' he meant this
precisely: for in the 'Scheme' (as I will refer to it) he is numbered 7,
and Kiryatan is numbered 8, while Elros has no number.
In B 2 the openings of these two paragraphs, $$24 - 5, were
.changed to the text given in SA: 'These things took place in the days
of Tar-Kiryatan the Shipbuilder, and of Tar-Atanamir his son ...",
and 'Then Tar-Ankalimon, son of Atanamir, became King ...' In this
'second phase' not only was the order of Atanamir and Kiryatan
reversed, but (although it was still to him that the Messengers came)
Atanamir becomes the thirteenth king (the original words in A, 'of
those kings that succeeded Elros' being now removed: in The Line
of Elros in Unfinished Tales (p. 221) Kiryatan was the twelfth and
Atanamir the thirteenth, with Elros counted as the first). The second
phase (B 2) of the Akallabeth thus represents, or rather rests on, a
further large development of the Numenorean history from that
seen in the first phase, or AB.
At the end of $25 there is a paragraph in AB which was omitted
in its entirety in B 2 (i.e. it was struck out on the B typescript):
The Elendili dwelt mostly near the west coasts of the land; but as
the shadow deepened in men's hearts, the estrangement between
the two parties grew greater, and the king commanded them to
remove and dwell in the east of the island, far from the haven of
Andunie, to which the Eldar had been wont to come; and there-
after the Eldar visited them only seldom and in secret. The chief
dwelling of the Elf-friends in the later days was thus about the
harbour of Romenna; and thence many set sail and returned to
Middle-earth, where they might speak with the Elves in the King-
dom of Gil-galad. For they still taught to their children the
Eldarin tongues, whereas among the King's Men these tongues
fell into disuse, and even the heirs of Earendil became known to
their people by names in the Numenorean tongue. And the kings
desired to put an end to all friendship between their people and
the Eldar (whom they called now the Spies of the Valar), hoping
to keep their deeds and their counsels hidden from the Lords of
the West. But all was known to Manwe that they did, and the
Valar were wroth with the Kings of Numenor and gave them
counsel no more.
For the explanation of this omission see p. 155. B 2 now continues
with SA $26.
$26. Thus the bliss of Westernesse became diminished ... At the
end of this paragraph AB has 'after the days of [Ar-Kiryatan >]
Tar-Kiryatan' (Kiryatan being then the son of Atanamir); in B 2
this became 'after the days of Tar-Ankalimon' (who has already
appeared in $25 as the son of Atanamir).
There is extant some original drafting for the passage concerning
the mounting obsession with death among the Numenoreans,
including the following passage that was not taken up in A:
And some taught that there was a land of shades filled with the
wraiths of the things that they had known and loved upon the
mortal earth, and that in shadow the dead should come there
bearing with them the shadows of their possessions.
$27. Thus it came to pass ... This paragraph in SA goes back with-
out change to the earliest text.
$28. In all this the Elf-friends had small part ... The end of this
paragraph, from 'lending them aid against Sauron', was altered in
SA; the authentic text reads:
But the King's Men sailed far away to the south, and though the
kingdoms and strongholds they made have left many rumours in
the legends of Men, the Eldar know naught of them. Only
Pelargir they remember, for there was the haven of the Elf-friends
above the mouths of Anduin the Great.
Pengolod implied, no doubt, that after the great division arose
among the Numenoreans the Elves of Eressea were cut off from any
knowledge of the imperial enterprises of the King's Men in the
further south of Middle-earth. But with the removal of Pengolod
and AElfwine from the published text, the Akallabeth lost its
anchorage in expressly Eldarin lore; and this led me (with as I now
think an excess of vigilance) to alter the end of the paragraph. - This
was the first appearance of Pelargir in the narratives of Numenor.
$29. In this Age, as is elsewhere told ... In AB the second sentence
of this paragraph ran: 'It was indeed in the days of Atanamir in
Numenor that in Mordor the Tower of Barad-dur was full-wrought,
and thereafter Sauron began to strive for the dominion of Middle-
earth ...' In B 2 this was altered to the text of SA, 'Already in the
days of Tar-Minastir, the eleventh King of Numenor, he had fortified
the land of Mordor and had built there the Tower of Barad-dur ...'
The appearance here of Tar-Minastir the eleventh king is of course
a further element in the enlarged history already encountered in
$$24-6. So also in this paragraph the text of AB 'nor did he
forget the aid that they [the Numenoreans] had rendered to Gil-
galad of old' was changed in B 2 to 'the aid that Tar-Minastir had
rendered ...'
In the sentence 'And Sauron hated the Numenoreans, because of
the deeds of their fathers and their ancient alliance with the Elves'
the word 'alliance' was an early change from the original word
'friendship'; see under $9 above.
The words in SA 'in that time when the One Ring was forged and
there was war between Sauron and the Elves in Eriador' were an
editorial addition.
$30. Yet Sauron was ever guileful ... This paragraph goes back to
A unaltered, except for the early change of 'great lords of Numenor'
to 'great lords of Numenorean race'. - The name Ulairi of the Ring-
wraiths seems to mark a period in my father's work: it is found also
in a text of the Tale of Years (p. 175); in The Heirs of Elendil
(Chapter VII); and in Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age
(published in The Silmarillion).
At the end of the paragraph my father wrote on the typescript C,
to follow 'he began to assail the strong places of the Numenoreans
upon the shores of the sea': 'but Umbar he could not yet take'. See
$41 below.
After SA $30 there is a second passage in AB (see p. 151) that was
excluded in B 2:
In those days there arose and took the throne of the Sea-kings the
great Tar-Calion, whom men called Ar-Pharazon the Golden, the
mightiest and the proudest of all his line. And twelve kings
had ruled the Numenoreans between Elros and Ar-Pharazon,
and slept now in their deep tombs under the mount of the
Meneltarma, lying upon beds of gold. Great and glorious was
Ar-Pharazon, sitting upon his carven throne in the city of
Ar-minaleth in the noon-tide of his realm; and to him came the
masters of ships and men returning out of the East, and they
spoke of Sauron, how he named himself the Great, and purposed
to become master of all Middle-earth, and to destroy even
Numenor, if that might be.
Then great was the anger of Ar-Pharazon hearing these tidings,
and he sat long in thought, and his mood darkened. And he deter-
mined without the counsel of the Valar, or the aid of any wisdom
but his own, that he would demand the allegiance and homage of
this lord; for in his pride he deemed that no king should ever arise
so mighty as to vie with the Heir of Earendil.
Ar-Pharazon is here named the fourteenth king, since 'twelve kings
had ruled the Numenoreans between Elros and Ar-Pharazon'; and
this agrees with The Drowning of Anadune (10) and also with the
Scheme on p. 151, where Ar-Pharazon is numbered 13 and Elros is
not counted.
At this point (i.e. following the conclusion of SA $30) there is a
direction on the typescript B to take in a rider, this being a finely-
written manuscript of four sides.
$31. In those days the Shadow grew deeper ... to $40 Great was the
anger ... This passage in SA (pp. 267 - 70) follows almost exactly
the text of the rider just referred to. Here there entered the narrative
of Numenor the story of the reigns of Ar-Adunakhor and Ar-
Gimilzor; of the Lords of Andunie, who were of the Line of Elros;
of the sons of Ar-Gimilzor, Inziladun and Gimilkhad, and their
conflict; of the unhappy reign of Inziladun (Tar-Palantir); and of the
forced marriage of his daughter Miriel (Ar-Zimraphel), the rightful
Queen, to Pharazon son of Gimilkhad, who seized the sceptre for
himself.
The few significant points in which the text of the rider was
changed in SA are as follows.
In $31 I altered 'the twentieth king' (Ar-Adunakhor) and 'the
twenty-third king' (Ar-Gimilzor) to 'nineteenth' and 'twenty-
second', and in $38 I altered 'four and twenty Kings and Queens
had ruled the Numenoreans' before Ar-Pharazon to 'three and
twenty'. My reason for making these (incorrect) changes (an
omission in the list of the rulers of Numenor given in Appendix A
(I, i)) has been fully explained in Unfinished Tales p. 226, note 11.
In $33 I omitted two notes (belonging to the same time as the
manuscript and forming part of it) concerning the Lords of
Andunie. The first of these refers to the words 'for they were of the
line of Elros' and reads: 'And they took names in Quenya, as did no
other house save the kings'; the second refers to the following
words, 'being descended from Silmarien, daughter of Tar-Elendil
the fourth king':
And in their line the sceptre would indeed have descended had the
law been in his day as it was later made. For when Tar-Ankalime
became the first ruling Queen, being the only child of Tar-
Aldarion the Sixth King, the law was made that the oldest child
of the King whether man or woman should receive the sceptre
and the kingly authority; but Silmarien was older than her
brother Meneldur who succeeded Tar-Elendil.
On this see Unfinished Tales p. 208, where the different formu-
lations of the new law brought in by Tar-Aldarion are discussed.
The law is stated here in the same words as in Appendix A (I, i), i.e.
simple primogeniture irrespective of sex (rather than inheritance of
the throne by a daughter only if the Ruler had no son).(11)
In $37 the Adunaic name of Tar-Miriel is not Ar-Zintraphel in the
long rider, but Ar-Zimrahil, and this is the form in all the sources:
in The Drowning of Anadune (IX.373, $48), in Akallabeth AB (see
$78 below), in The Line of Elros (Unfinished Tales p. 224), and in
Aldarion and Erendis (ibid. p. 190). Ar-Zimraphel actually occurs
in one place only, a change made by my father in the present para-
graph on the amanuensis typescript C. This I adopted in SA, and the
change to Ar-Zimraphel was also made silently to the passages in
The Line of Elros and Aldarion and Erendis.
Under $$24-5 and 30 above I have given two passages in AB that
were struck out when the long rider was introduced. The first of
these, following SA $25 and beginning 'The Elendili dwelt mostly
near the west coasts ...' (p. 151) was largely re-used in the rider (SA
$32, Now the Elendili dwelt mostly in the western regions ...), but
the forced removal of the Elf-friends to the east of Numenor was
now carried out by Ar-Gimilzor, whereas in AB the king who com-
manded it is not named. The second omitted passage, following SA
$30 and beginning 'In those days there arose and took the throne of
the Sea-kings the great Tar-Calion' (p. 153), was postponed to the
end of the rider, where it reappears in revised form (SA $$38-40,
p. 270). At the words in $40 'so mighty as to vie with the Heir of
Earendil' the rider ends, and the AB or 'first phase' text takes up
again with 'Therefore he began in that time to smithy great hoard
of weapons ...'.(12)
Several pages were placed with the rider, written on the same
paper, in which my father is seen devising a different story of the
marriage of Pharazon and MirieL For this see pp. 159 ff.
$41. And men saw his sails coming up out of the sunset ... In the
first sentence the words 'gleaming with red and gold' (of the sails of
the ships of Ar-Pharazon) should read 'gleaming with red gold' (a
phrase that goes back to The Drowning of Anadune, IX.389, $28).
In the second sentence I altered the original text 'Umbar, where
there was a mighty haven that no hand had wrought' to 'Umbar,
where was the mighty haven of the Numenoreans that no hand had
wrought', in view of Appendix B, Second Age 2280: 'Umbar is made
into a great fortress of Numenor' (nearly a thousand years before
the coming of Ar-Pharazon). For the same reason I changed the orig-
inal text in the following sentence, from 'Empty and silent under the
sickle moon was the land when the King of the Sea set foot upon the
shore' to 'Empty and silent were all the lands about when the King
of the Sea marched upon Middle-earth'. (It is probable that when
my father wrote this he did not yet suppose that Umbar was a
Numenorean fortress and harbour at the time of Ar-Pharazon's
landing.)
$$42 ff. In the remainder of the Akallabeth the text of the original
manuscript A underwent very little change indeed at any subsequent
stage; there is thus no further need to comment on the text para-
graph by paragraph. Only occasional editorial alteration was made
in SA, and in the rest of this account it can be understood that
except as stated the published work follows the original exactly, or
at most with very slight modification not worth recording.(13)
$44. Yet such was the cunning of his mind ... (p. 271). The text of
AB reads 'all the councillors, save Valandil only, began to fawn
upon him'. In B 2 my father changed Valandil to Amandil here and
at all subsequent occurrences. Since Amandil had not been
mentioned in the text previously I added the words 'lord of
Andunie' in SA. - It is curious that the naming of Elendil's father
Valandil was a reversion to The Lost Road (V.60, 69). In the course
of the writing of The Lord of the Rings the name was variously and
fleetingly applied to a brother of Elendil, to a son of Elendil, and to
Elendil himself (VI.169, 175; VII.121, 123-4).
$53. Nonetheless for long it seemed to the Numenoreans ... (p.
274). In the last sentence 'the kindly kings of the ancient days' is an
editorial change from 'the kindly kings of the Elder Days'.
$57. 'The days are dark, and there is no hope for Men ... (p. 275).
The text has 'there is no hope in Men', and the reading in SA
appears to be a mere error, since there is no reason for the change.
In the speeches of Amandil and Elendil that follow my father
evidently intended a distinction between 'thou' from father to son
and 'you' from son to father, but his usage was not consistent. In SA
I substituted 'you' throughout.
$73. Then Ar-Pharazon hardened his heart ... (p. 278). The name
of the great ship of Ar-Pharazon is Aglarrama in AB (as in The
Drowning of Anadune, IX.372, $44), changed in B 2 to Alkaron-
das.
$75. But the fleets of Ar-Pharazon ... (p. 278). In the original text
(at all stages) this paragraph begins:
But who among Men, AElfwine, can tell the tale of their fate? For
neither ship nor man of all that host returned ever to the lands of
the living; and the world was changed in that time, and in Middle-
earth the memory of all that went before is dim and unsure. But
among the Eldar word has been preserved of the deeds and things
that were; and the wisest in lore among them tell this tale,
AElfwine, that I tell now to thee. And they say that the fleets of Ar-
Pharazon came up out of the deeps of the Sea and encompassed
Avallone and all the Isle of Eressea ...
Since this last phrase is found already in A it is clear that the
changed meaning of Avallone (signifying the eastern haven in
Eressea, not the Isle itself) had entered during the writing of A (see
under $12 above).
In SA 'Taniquetil' is an editorial change from 'the Mountain of
Aman', and 'the light of Iluvatar' from 'the light of God'.
$76. Then Manwe upon the Mountain ... In the first sentence 'their
government of Arda' was a change in SA from 'their government of
the Earth'.
$77. But the land of Aman ... Two changes were made here in SA.
The original text has 'were taken away and removed from the circles
of the world beyond the reach of Men for ever', and 'there is not
now within the circles of the world any place abiding ...'.
$78. In an hour unlooked for by Men ... AB has 'Ar-Zimrahil',
changed in B 2 to 'Tar-Miriel'; see note 12.
$80. Nine ships there were ... All the texts have 'Twelve ships there
were: six for Elendil, and for Isildur four, and for Anarion two', but
on the amanuensis typescript C my father changed the numbers
to 'nine: four, three, two', noting in the margin: 'Nine, unless the
rhyme in LR is altered to Four times three.' The reference is to the
song that Gandalf sang as he rode on Shadowfax with Pippin across
Rohan on their way to Minas Tirith (The Two Towers p. 202):
Tall ships and tall kings
Three times three,
What brought they from the foundered land
Over the flowing sea?
$81. Elendil and his sons ... The opening of this paragraph was
altered in SA to remove a reference to AElfwine: 'And here ends the
tale, AElfwine, to speak of Elendil and his sons, who later founded
kingdoms in Middle-earth ...'.
$83. But these things come not into the tale ... B had 'the Drown-
ing of Anadune', corrected to 'the Drowning of Numenor' (a rever-
sion to the reading of A). At the end of the paragraph AB had 'spoke
of Akallabeth that was whelmed in the waves, the Downfallen,
Atalante in the Eldarin tongue', with Akallabeth changed to
Mar-nu-Falmar in B 2. The removal of Akallabeth (restored in SA)
belongs with the general replacement of Adunaic by Elvish names:
see under $78 above, and note 12. - On one of the copies of the
typescript C my father wrote this note on the name Atalante:
The Adunaic or Numenorean name of the same meaning was
Akallabeth, vKALAB. By a curious coincidence (not consciously
prepared) before this tale was written a base vTALAT 'collapse, fall
in ruin' had already been invented, and from that base atalante
'it has fallen down' was a correct formation according to gram-
matical rules devised before Numenor had been thought of. The
resemblance to Atlantis is thus by chance (as we say).
Against this note is written '71', which must mean '1971' (see
XI.187, 191). With this statement on the subject cf. Lowdham's
remarks in The Notion Club Papers, IX.249; my father's letter of
July 1964 cited in V.8 (footnote); and the Etymologies, V.390, stem
TALAT.
$$84-6. The concluding section of the Akallabeth, beginning in SA
Among the Exiles many believed ...' (pp. 281 - 2), was headed in A
Epilogue; this was omitted in B. There is a full discussion of this
section in relation to The Drowning of Anadune in IX.391-6.
$84. Among the Exiles many believed ... The original text, not
changed from A, reads:
But if thou wouldst know, AElfwine, ere thou goest, why it is that
men of the seed of Earendil, or any such as thou to whom some
part, however small, of their blood is descended, should still
venture upon the Sea, seeking for that which cannot be found,
this much I will say to thee.
The summit of the Meneltarma, the Pillar of Heaven, in the
midst of the land, had been a hallowed place, and even in the days
of Sauron none had defiled it. Therefore among the Exiles many
believed that it was not drowned for ever, but rose again above
the waves, a lonely island lost in the great waters, unless haply a
mariner should come upon it. And some there were that after
sought for it, because it was said among lore-masters that the far-
sighted men of old could see from the Meneltarma a glimmer of
the Deathless Land.
$86. Thus in after days ... The sentence 'until it came to Tol
Eressea, the Lonely Isle' was a change in SA from the original 'until
it came to Eressea where are the Eldar immortal'. Immediately
following, 'where the Valar still dwell and watch the unfolding of
the story of the world' was an early change from the reading of A,
'where the Valar still dwell but watch only and meddle no longer in
the world abandoned to Men'.
In the last sentence 'and so had come to the lamplit quays of Aval-
lone' was an editorial change from 'and so had come to Avallone
and to Eressea' ('to Eressea and to Avallone' A). For the 'lamplit
quays of Avallone' see V.334.
After the conclusion of the Akallabeth in SA the following lines
were omitted:
And whether all these tales be feigned, or whether some at least
be true, and by them the Valar still keep alight among Men a
memory beyond the darkness of Middle-earth, thou knowest
now, AElfwine, in thyself. Yet haply none shall believe thee.
Note on the marriage of Miriel and Pharazon.
My father did much work on this story, but it is not easy to see how it
is to be related to the paragraph (SA $37, And it came to pass that Tar-
Palantir grew weary ...) in the long rider inserted into the typescript
B, which is exactly repeated in SA except for the change of Ar-
Zimrahil to Ar-Zimraphel (p. 155). It will in any case be clearer if the
genealogy is set out (cf. The Line of Elros in Unfinished Tales, p. 223).
Earendur Lindorie
15th Lord of
Andunie
Inzilbeth = Ar-Gimilzor
Numendil Inziladun Gimilkhad
17th Lord of Tar-Palantir
Andunie
Amandil Elentir Tar-Miriel = Ar-Pharazon
Ar-Zimrahil
The significance of Amandil's brother Elentir will be seen in the texts
given here: so far as I am aware he appears nowhere else. These texts
were written on the same paper as the long rider and were inserted
with it into the typescript B.
(a)
This is a very rough manuscript written in such haste that it has
proved extraordinarily difficult to decipher. The text that follows is
uncertain in many points, but these do not affect the narrative and I
have largely dispensed with brackets and queries; it does not convey
at all the appearance of the original.
He [Ar-Pharazon] was a man of great beauty and strength/stature
after the image of the first kings, and indeed in his youth was not
unlike the Edain of old in mind also, though he had strength of will
rather than of wisdom as after appeared, when he was corrupted by
the counsels of his father and the acclaim of the people. In his earlier
days he had a close friendship with Amandil who was afterwards
Lord of Andunie,(14) and he had loved the people of the House of
Valandil with whom he had kinship (through Inzilbeth his father's
mother). With them he was often a guest, and there came Zimrahil
his cousin, daughter of Inziladun who was later King Tar-Palantir.
Elentir the brother of Amandil loved her, but when first she saw
Pharazon her eyes and her heart were turned to him, for his beauty,
and for his wealth also.
But he went away (15) and she remained unwed. And now it came
to pass that her father Tar-Palantir grew weary of grief and died,
and as he had no son the sceptre came to her, in the name of Tar-
Miriel, by right and the laws of the Numenoreans. But Pharazon
[?arose) and came to her, and she was glad, and forsook the
allegiance of her father for the time, being enamoured of Pharazon.
And in this they broke the laws of Numenor that forbade marriage
even in the royal house between those more nearly akin than cousins
in the second degree. But they were too powerful for any to gainsay
them. And when they were wedded she yielded the sceptre to
Pharazon, and he sat upon the throne of Elros in the name of Ar-
Pharazon the Golden, but she retained also her title as hers by right,
and was called Ar-Zimrahil.(16)
The Elendili alone were not subservient to him, or dared to speak
against his wishes, and it became well-known to all in that time that
Amandil the Lord of Andunie was head of their party though not
openly declared. Therefore Ar-Pharazon persecuted the Faithful,
stripping them of any wealth that they had, and he deprived the
heirs of Valandil of their lordship. Andunie he took then and made
it a chief haven for the king's ship-building, and Amandil who was
now the Lord he commanded to move and dwell also in Romenna.
Yet he did not otherwise molest him [? at this time], nor dismiss him
from the Council of the Sceptre, because he remembered still in his
heart their friendship of old; and Amandil was well beloved also by
many who were not of the Elendili.
And now when he deemed himself [?firm] upon the throne and
beyond all gainsaying he sat in A[rmenelos] in the glory of his
power, and he found it too little to appease his [?lust], and amid all
his splendour he brooded darkly upon war.
There are a number of phrases in this text that are identical or almost
so to those found in the long rider ('Tar-Palantir grew weary of grief
and died', 'by right and the laws of the Numenoreans', 'those more
nearly akin than cousins in the second degree', 'he brooded darkly
upon war', SA $$37, 39). It would be natural to suppose that these
phrases made their first appearance in this text, which was dashed
down on the page, and that they were repeated in the rider, which was
a manuscript written with great care; and in that case it would have
to be concluded that my father discarded this story of the love of
Amandil's brother Elentir for Zimrahil, and of her turning away from
him and from the Elf-friends and glad acceptance of Pharazon, before
writing the final version. But I doubt that this was the case.
(b)
A second page is in handwriting even more obscure, and I have not
been able to make out the whole of it after repeated attempts.
In his boyhood he had a close friendship with Amandil son of
Numendil Lord of Andunie, who being one of the chief councillors
of the Sceptre dwelt often in Armenelos.
Cut out friendship. Ar-Pharazon's policy to Amandil was due to
his wife?
Now Zimrahil, whom her father called Miriel, only daughter of
Tar-Palantir, was a woman of great beauty, smaller [?in ... stature]
than were most women of that land, with bright eyes, and she had
great skill in ... She was older than Ar-Pharazon by one year," but
seemed younger, and his eyes and heart were turned to her; but the
laws of Numenor lay between, beside the displeasure of her father
whom Gimilkhad opposed in all ways that he could. For in
Numenor cousins in the first degree did not marry even in the royal
house. And moreover Zimrahil was betrothed to Elentir Amandil's
[?older] brother and heir of Numendil.(18)
From a distance,(19) for Gimilkhad and his son were not welcome
in the house of the king.
In the remainder of the text there are a number of whole sentences,
clearly essential to the briefly sketched narrative, in which I can
decipher virtually nothing.
Now it came into his heart that he would .......... Pharazon was not
disposed to admit hindrance to his desires, and he asked leave there-
fore of Amandil to be a guest in his house, learning ..... Zimrahil
was at the time in Andunie. Gimilkhad was little pleased with this,
for the Lords of Andunie were his chief opponents. But Pharazon
[?laughed] saying he would do as he would, and ..........
And Amandil and Pharazon rode in Andunie and Elentir and
Zimrahil saw them afar as they [?stood] ..... for Elentir loved his
brother. But when Zimrahil saw Pharazon in the splendour of his
young manhood come riding [? in] .......... Suddenly Zimrahil's heart
turned towards him. And when Pharazon was greeted upon the
steps of the house their eyes met .......... and were abashed.
I take this to be a further movement in the story struggling to emerge,
in which my father was considering a different treatment of
Pharazon's intrusion into the relationship of Miriel and Elentir (who
are now said to be betrothed); but the sketch is so rapid, and so much
is indecipherable, that the actual course of the story is obscure.
(c)
A brief, clearly written text is the third of these papers associated with
the rider inserted into the text of the Akallabeth.
For Pharazon son of Gimilkhad had become even more restless and
eager for wealth and power than his father. He was a man of great
beauty and stature, in the likeness of the first kings of men; and
indeed in his youth he was not unlike the Edain of old in mind also,
though he had courage and strength of will rather than of wisdom,
as after appeared, when he was corrupted by the counsels of his
father, and the acclaim of the people. In his earlier days he had a
close friendship with Amandil son of Numendil, Lord of Andunie,
and he loved the people of that House, with whom he himself had
kinship (through Inzilbeth his father's mother). With them he was
often a guest, and there also his cousin, daughter of Inziladun, was
often to be found. For Elentir Amandil's brother loved her, and she
had turned her heart to him, and it was known that soon they would
be betrothed.
In this my father was closely following the opening of text (a), but the
last sentence of the text, before it was abandoned, turns away, with the
mention of the approaching betrothal of Elentir and Zimrahil, and
was perhaps about to take a different course.
(d)
Finally, my father wrote the following passage in the margin of the
inserted rider against $37, though without indication of its placing:
most probably at the end of the paragraph ('... and the name of his
queen he changed to Ar-Zimrahil').
And he persecuted the Faithful, and deprived the Lords of Andunie
of their lordship, since they had aided Tar-Palantir and supported
his daughter. Andunie he took then and made it the chief harbour of
the king's ships, and Amandil the Lord he commanded to dwell in
Romenna. Yet he did not otherwise molest him, nor dismiss him
yet from his Council. For in the days of his youth (ere his father
corrupted him) Amandil had been his dear friend.
This is very closely related to the end of text (a), p. 160, 'Therefore
Ar-Pharazon persecuted the Faithful ...'; on the other hand, it seems
clear from the words 'and supported his daughter' that the story of
Zimrahil's love for Pharazon is not present.
It is not perfectly clear to me how the textual puzzle presented by
these writings is to be resolved, but I am inclined to think that, con-
trary to appearance, the texts (a), (b), and (c) in fact followed the
writing of the long rider to the Akallabeth, and that they represent
the emergence of a doubt in my father's mind whether the marriage of
Pharazon and Zimrahil was indeed 'against her will', and the sketch-
ing of a new story on the subject. The close agreement of phrases
in (a) with those in the rider (see pp. 160 - 1) must then be interpreted
as simple repetition of what was already present there, rather than as
drafting for it. Finally, on this view, he abandoned the new story, and
returned to that already present in $37. Amandil's brother Elentir was
lost, at any rate in the recorded tradition.
It may be noted that the youthful friendship of Pharazon and
Amandil is referred to in SA $47 (Then Ar-Pharazon the King
turned back ..., p. 272), and this indeed goes back to the original
manuscript of the Akallabeth: 'In the days of their youth together
Valandil [> Amandil] had been dear to Ar-Pharazon, and though he
was of the Elf-friends he remained in his council until the coming of
Sauron.'
NOTES.
1. I think now that such slight evidence as there is points rather to
about 1960 as the date of these works.
2. In $1 I altered the original 'yet they came at last to the lands that
look upon the Sea. These are indeed that folk of whom thou hast
heard that came into Beleriand in the days of the war of the
Noldor and Morgoth' in order to remove the italicised words (the
alteration of the last sentence to 'entered Beleriand in the days of
the War of the Jewels' was a very late change, one of the very few
that my father made to the typescript C). In $2, similarly, I
changed 'and thou hast heard how at the last' to 'and in the Lay
of Earendil it is told how at the last'.
3. The Line of Elros ends with the words (Unfinished Tales p. 224):
'Of the deeds of Ar-Pharazon, of his glory and his folly, more is
told in the tale of the Downfall of Numenor, which Elendil wrote,
and which was preserved in Gondor.'
4. In A my father added a footnote here, omitted in B: 'Rothinzil is
a name in the Numenorean tongue, and it has the same meaning
as Vingilot, which is Foamflower.'
5. It is true that in the opening sentence of the Tale of Years my
father substituted in the final typescript 'The First Age ended with
the Great Battle, in which the Host of Valinor broke Thangoro-
drim and overthrew Morgoth', replacing a reference to 'Fionwe
and the sons of the Valar' of preceding versions (see pp. 172 - 3);
but he may not have removed the name Fionwe (Eonwe) for the
same reason as I did in the Akallabeth.
6. The manuscript A had 'called', which became 'call' in B.
7. Cf. Elrond's words in The Council of Elrond (FR p. 257): 'There
in the courts of the King [in Minas Anor] grew a white tree, from
the seed of that tree which Isildur brought over the deep waters,
and the seed of that tree before came from Eressea, and before
that out of the Uttermost West in the Day before days when the
world was young.'
8. 'Tar-Atanamir' was struck out in A and does not appear in B, but
this seems to have been due only to my father's wish to postpone
the naming of the king to $24.
9. Nimruzirim: Nimruzir is the name of Elendil in The Drowning of
Anadune.
10. In The Drowning of Anadune (IX.363, $20) 'seven kings had
ruled ... between Indilzar [Elros] and Ar-Pharazon', but 'seven'
was changed to 'twelve' (IX.381).
11. Other footnotes (on the inscription of the Quenya name Herunu-
men of Ar-Adunakhor in the Scroll of Kings, $31, and on the
explanation of the name Tar-Palantir, $35, with which cf. The
Line of Elros in Unfinished Tales p. 223) were incorporated into
the body of the text in SA. At the end of $35 I extended the words
of the original text 'the ancient tower of King Minastir upon
Oromet' to '... upon the hill of Oromet nigh to Andunie', this
being taken from The Line of Elros, p. 220; and in $37 after
'Miriel' I added the words 'in the Elven-tongue'.
12. Before the second of these passages was struck out (and so before
the insertion of the rider) my father went through it and all the
remainder of the typescript B and replaced Ar-Pharazon by
Tar-Kalion (in the rejected passage, p. 153, he cut out the words
'whom men called Ar-Pharazon', thus leaving 'Tar-Calion the
Golden'). His intention, presumably, was to use Elvish names
exclusively; nonetheless, in the inserted rider he named the king
Ar-Pharazon. The typist of C therefore moved from one name
to the other; and seeing this my father began on C to change
Tar-Kalion back to Ar-Pharazon, but soon wearied of it. In SA I
adopted Ar-Pharazon.
13. Throughout this concluding part of the Akallabeth I substituted
the name Ar-Pharazon for Tar-Kalion, as explained in note 12.
Arminaleth was changed to Armenelos on B, and this was taken
up in SA.
14. The following is written in the margin here: '3rd in line from
Earendur and 18th from Valandil the First Lord of Andunie .
15. Above 'he went away' is written '[?Pharazon] went to the wars';
cf. SA $36 (Now Gimilkhad died ...): He [Pharazon] had fared
often abroad, as a leader in the wars that the Numenoreans made
then in the coastlands of Middle-earth'.
16. At this point in the manuscript stands the following: 'And his
love therefore of the Lords of Andunie turned to hate, since they
alone were powerful or wise enough to restrain him and give
counsel against his desires.' A second version following this was
struck out, and no doubt my father intended the rejection of the
first also.
17. In The Line of Elros Ar-Pharazon was born in 3118, and Tar-
Miriel in 3117 (Unfinished Tales p. 224)-
18. The word I have given as 'older' is scarcely interpretable at all
as it stands, but 'older' or 'elder' seems inevitable, since Elentir is
called the heir of Numendil, Lord of Andunie, apparently dis-
placing Amandil.
19. 'From a distance' presumably refers back to the words 'his eyes
and heart were turned to her'.
VI.
THE TALE OF YEARS OF
THE SECOND AGE.
The chronology of the Second Age can be traced back to its origin in
two small half-sheets of paper. That these are not only the first written
record of such a chronology, but represent the actual moment of its
establishment, seems certain from the obviously experimental nature
of the calculations. I will refer to the various texts of the Tale of Years
by the letter T, and call the first of these pages, given below, T(a) to
indicate its primary nature. The rejected figures, being overwritten, are
in some cases hard to make out, but I believe this to be a substantially
correct representation of the text as it was first written; following it, I
give the subsequent changes.
Time Scheme.
'Ages' last about 3000 years.
The 'Black Years' or the age between the Great Battle and defeat
of Morgoth, and the Fall of Numenor and the overthrow of
Sauron lasted about 3500.
Thus:
Great Battle
Judgement of Fionwe and establishment of Numenor 10
Reign of Elros 410
11 other kings averaging 240 each 2640
Last 13th king 220
-----
3280
Elendil (very long-lived) was [many rejected figures] 200 years
old at Fall of Numenor, and Isildur 100. The new realms lasted
100 years before Sauron opened war. 100
The gathering of Alliance 3 years, the Siege 7 10
3390
The Third Age was 'drawing to its end' in Frodo's time. So that
Loss of Ring was about 3000 years ago. For 500 years Sauron
remained quiet and then began slowly to grow in Mirkwood -
that stirred events and wakened the Ring to come back.
So Smeagol and Deagol's finding occurred about 600 years after
Isildur's death. Gollum therefore had the Ring near[ly] 2400
years.
Average life of a Numenorean 210 years (3 X 70)
Average life of royal house 350 years (5 X 70)
A King of Numenor usually acceded when about 100-120 and
ruled about 250 years.
These dates seem to have been changed in this order. First, the dur-
ation of the new realms before Sauron assailed them was changed
from 100 to 110 years, giving a total of 3400 (and at the beginning of
the text the figure of 'about 3500' for the length of the Black Years, i.e.
the Second Age, was changed to 'about 3400', and not subsequently
altered). Then the establishment of Numenor was changed from 10 to
50, giving the date 3320 for the Fall of Numenor, and a total of 3440
years in the Second Age.
Sauron's 'remaining quiet' (in the Third Age) was changed from 500
to 1000 years, the finding of the Ring in the Anduin from 600 to 1100
years after Isildur's death, and Gollum's possession of it from 2400 to
1900 years.
A pencilled note, very probably of the same time, on this page
reads: 'In character Aragorn was a hardened man of say 45. He was
actually 90, and would live at least another 50 (probably 70) years.
Aragorn was a Numenorean of pure blood but the span had dwindled
to double life.'
The second of these two primary pages, unquestionably written at
the same time as the first (as is shown by the paper used), is headed
'The Second Age and the Black Years', and gives dates from 'B.Y.' 0
(the end of the Great Battle) to the loss of the One Ring and the end
of the Second Age, the date of which (3440 in T(a)) now becomes
3441, which was never changed. This page, being the earliest version
of an actual 'Tale of Years', I will call T 1. In its earlier part T 1 was
so much corrected and reworked as my father proceeded that it is
scarcely possible to analyse the successive stages of its endlessly
changed chronology; but in a subsequent text he followed the final
form of T 1 so closely that it can be given in its place. The chief point
to notice in it is the entry 'Foundation of Tarkilion', which was
changed (probably at once) to 'Foundation of Artheden (Dunhirion)
and Gondor'. The name Dunhirion is also found, but not so far as I
know elsewhere, in a late text of the chapter The Council of Elrond,
where it was corrected to Annuminas; while Tarkilion is found in the
original manuscript of Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age, like-
wise corrected to Annuminas, and likewise apparently not found else-
where. Artheden is clearly the first appearance of Arthedain, though
not with its later significance.
The page T 1 (in its final form) was followed so closely by the next
text that it seems probable that no long interval had elapsed. This is a
clearly written manuscript on two sides of a single sheet; I will refer to
it as T 2. A few changes were made to it in red ink, but they were made
after the subsequent version had been written (since the same changes
were made to that, also in red ink), and I do not notice them here.
Of the Tale of Years
in the latter ages.
The 'First Age' (1) ended with the Great Battle and the departure
of the Elves and Fathers of Men, and the foundation of
Numenor.
The 'Second Age' ended with the overthrow of Sauron, and
the Loss of the One Ring.
The 'Third Age' is drawing to its end in the tales of the Shire
and of the Hobbits.
Each 'Age' last[ed] somewhat more or less than 3000 years;
so that the Loss of the Ring was about 3000 years before
Frodo's time. Deagol finds it about 1100 years after Isildur's
death. 'Gollum' therefore had the Ring for about 1900 years.
The Second Age or the Black Years
reckoned from the overthrow of Morgoth
End of the Great Battle.
10. Foundation of the Havens, and the kingdom of Lindon.
50. Foundation of Numenor.
460. Death of Elros, Earendel's son, first king of Numenor.
500. Reawakening (2) of Sauron in Middle-earth.
700. First ships of the Numenoreans return to Middle-earth.
Others come at times, but seldom, and they do not stay.
750. Foundation of Imladrist (3) (Rivendell) and Eregion
(Hollin).
900. - Sauron begins in secret to build the fortress of Barad-
dur in Mordor, and makes the forges of Orodruin.
1200-1500. The Rings of Power are made in Eregion.
1550. War of the Elves and Sauron. The 'Days of Flight' begin,
or the Black Years properly so called.
1600. Gil-galad defends Lindon; and Imladris is besieged but
holds out. Eregion is laid waste.
1700. The great voyages of the Numenoreans begin. They
come in many ships to Lindon, and they aid Gil-galad
and Elrond.
1900. Barad-dur is completed.
2000-3000. Sauron's dominion slowly extends over all
Middle-earth, but it is withheld from the North-West,
and all along the West-shores, even far southwards, the
Numenoreans have fortresses and outposts.
3118. Tar-kalion the young king, the thirteenth of his line,
ascends the throne of Numenor. He resolves to challenge
Sauron the Great, and begins an armament (3120).
3125. Tar-kalion sets sail to Middle-earth. Sauron is obliged to
yield and is taken to Numenor.
3319. Downfall of Numenor. Elendil, Anarion and Isildur fly
to Middle-earth. Foundation of Arthedain (with the city
Annuminas) in the North; and of Gondor (with the city
Osgiliath) in the South.
3320. Sauron returns to Mordor.
3430-3. Sauron at last being ready makes war in Gondor. The
Last Alliance is formed.
3433 [> 3434]. Battle of Dagorlad. Siege of Barad-dur begun.
3441. Sauron overthrown. Ring taken and lost. End of the
Second Age.
The following are the only differences in the chronology of T 2 from
its forerunner. In T 1 Sauron's departure to Numenor is given a sep-
arate entry under the year 3128; and (while T 1 already has the final
date 3319 for the Downfall, where T(a) had 3320) the flight of Elendil
and his sons is placed, most strangely, a year later, in 3320.
It will be seen that the dates of events in the Second Age are for the
most part at variance with those in Appendix B, in many cases very
widely so (thus Imladris was founded at the same time as Eregion, in
750, but in Appendix B not until 1697, in the War of the Elves and
Sauron, when Eregion was laid waste). The most extreme of these dif-
ferences refers in fact to the Third Age, in the headnote to the text,
where the statement in T(a) that Deagol found the Ring in about Third
Age 1100 and therefore Gollum possessed it for some 1900 years
(p. 167) is repeated: in Appendix B Deagol finds the Ring in T.A.2463,
by which reckoning Gollum had it for 478 years, until Bilbo found it
in 2941.
There are a number of points of agreement between T 2 (under
which I include here the closely similar T 1) and the 'Scheme' of the
Numenorean kings accompanying the original manuscript A of the
Akallabeth, given on pp. 150-1. In both, the death of Elros is placed
in the year 460 (not as later in 442); in T 2 the coming of the
Numenoreans to the aid of Gil-galad in Lindon is dated 1700, while
in the 'Scheme' this is said to have occurred in the days of the unnamed
sixth king (after Elros), who died in 1790; in T 2 the accession of Tar-
kalion is placed in 3118, and in the 'Scheme' his father, the unnamed
twelfth king (after Elros) died in that year; and in both the date of Tar-
kalion's landing in Middle-earth is 3125. A further point of agreement
between both, and also with the manuscript A of the Akallabeth, con-
cerns the completion of Barad-dur: in T 2 this is dated 1900; in
Akallabeth A (see p. 153, $29) it is said to have occurred in the days
of Atanamir; and in the 'Scheme' Atanamir is said to have died in
2061, his father having died in 1790.
Two other points in this earliest version (or strictly versions) of the
Tale of Years of the Second Age remain to be mentioned. The loss of
the One Ring is expressly placed in the last year of the Second Age,
3441; whereas in Appendix B the headnote states that that Age 'ended
with the first overthrow of Sauron ... and the taking of the One Ring'
(cf. also the last words of section I (i) of Appendix A, RK p. 318),
while the planting of the White Tree in Minas Anor, the handing over
of the South Kingdom to Meneldil, and the death of Isildur are placed
in the year 2 of the Third Age. Secondly, in the entry for 3319 Anarion
is placed before Isildur, and it will be seen shortly that this does indeed
mean that Anarion was the elder of Elendil's sons (cf. the text FN III
in IX.335: 'his sons Anarion and Isildur'). In Akallabeth A and sub-
sequently Isildur had four ships and Anarion two (p. 157, $80), from
which it seems clear that the reversal of this had already taken place.
On the other hand, in an early version of the chapter The Council of
Elrond Isildur was expressly stated to be the elder (VII.126).
Found with T 2 and to all appearance belonging to the same time
is another page in which my father restated in the same or closely
similar terms a part of his notes on Numenor and the aftermath of the
Downfall in T(a), pp. 166-7. This page I will call T(b). Corrections to
it were made at the same time as those to T 2, and are not noticed here.
Average life of a Numenorean before the fall was about 210
years (3 x 70). Average life of the royal house of the line of
Earendel' was about 350 years (5 X 70). A king of Numenor
usually came to the throne when about 120 years old and
reigned 200 years or more.
50 Numenor founded
410 years Elros reigned
2640 11 other kings (averaging 240 each)
220 Last king (Tarkalion)
----
3320
Elendil was very long-lived (being of Earendel's line). He was
about 200 years old at the time of the Fall of Numenor and
Anarion 110, Isildur 100. The new realms of Arnor and Gon-
dor lasted about 110 years before Sauron made his first attacks
on them. The gathering of the Last Alliance, the march, battle
and siege, lasted about 11 years. (121)
3320 + 121, 3441.
The remainder of this page and its verso are taken up with the
earliest version of the Tale of Years of the Third Age, obviously writ-
ten continuously from T(b) just given; for this see p. 225.
These initial computations of the chronology of the Second Age are
remarkable in themselves and perplexing in the detail of their inter-
relations.
The text T(a), self-evidently the starting-point, made 3320 the date
of the Downfall. After a lapse of 110 years Sauron opened war on the
new kingdoms (3430), and a further ten passed before his overthrow
in 3440, the last year of the Second Age.
In T 1, written at the same time as, but after, T(a), the Downfall is
placed in 3319 (no reason for the change being evident), but the flight
of Elendil and his sons is incomprehensibly placed in the following
year, 3320 (p. 169). Again after 110 years Sauron attacked Gondor
(3430), but now eleven years passed before his overthrow in 3441.
In T 2, which is little more than a fair copy of T 1, the founding of
the kingdoms in Middle-earth is placed in the year of the Downfall,
which is now 111 years before Sauron's attack in 3430; as in T 1,
eleven years passed before the overthrow of Sauron in 3441.
Finally, the extremely puzzling text T(b) goes back to T(a) in placing
the Downfall in 3320, and 110 years passed before the war began in
3430; but the total of 3441 is reached as in T 1 and T 2 by the lapse
of eleven years before the overthrow. T(b) is apparently a companion
page to T 2, and must be later than the other texts, since the Northern
Kingdom is here called Arnor, not Arthedain, and this change only
entered after a further text of the Tale of Years had been written.
If we now turn to the Akallabeth 'Scheme' (pp. 150-1) it will be
seen that the date 3319 of the Downfall is reached by an entirely
different route. In the 'Scheme' the intervals between the death-dates
of the kings are in every case either 221 or 222 years, except for those
between the unnamed sixth king and Atanamir, the seventh, which
was 50 years longer (271 years), and between Atanamir and his son
Kiryatan which was 50 years shorter (172 years). If all these intervals
are added together they reach a total of 2658 years; and if to this is
added the year of the death of Elros (460) and the length of the reign
of Tar-kalion (201 years) we reach 3319, the date of the Downfall.(4)
In the 'Scheme' Tar-kalion is numbered '13', but he is expressly the
thirteenth king excluding Elros, as he is also in Akallabeth A and The
Drowning of Anadune as revised (see p. 154 and note 10), so that
there were fourteen kings of Numenor in all.
In the texts T(a) and T(b), on the other hand, 'eleven other kings'
ruled between Elros and Tar-kalion, making thirteen in all; and the
average length of their reigns being here 240 years, the total is 2640.
When to this is added 460 and Tar-kalion's reign of 220 years the total
is 3320.
A final element is the fact that in T 1, the companion page to T(a),
Tar-kalion ascended the throne in 3118 and reigned for 201 years, just
as in the 'Scheme'.
Every explanation of this extraordinary textual puzzle seems to
founder. It is not in itself perhaps a matter of great significance, though
one certainly gets the impression that there is more to the date 3319
(and possibly also to 3441) than the evidence reveals. It is clear, at any
rate, that all these texts, the original manuscript of the Akallabeth and
its associated 'Scheme', the computations in the texts T(a) and T(b),
and the initial version of the Tale of Years, arose at the same time,
before the narrative of The Lord of the Rings was in final form; while
the evidence suggests that it was these computations of the Numenor-
ean kings, formulaic as they were, that provided the chronological
'vehicle' of the Second Age, established at that time. It can be seen
from the text T 1 that the Numenorean history provided the fixed ele-
ment, while the dating of events in Middle-earth before the Downfall
were at first of an extreme fluidity (the making of the Rings of Power,
for instance, was moved from 1000-1200 to 1200-1500, and the War
of the Elves and Sauron from 1200 to 1550).
The third text of the Tale of Years, which I will call T 3, is (so far as
the Second Age is concerned) little more than a copy of T 2, with a
number of entries somewhat expanded, and one sole additional entry:
'3440 Anarion is slain'; no dates were altered. Anarion and Isildur still
appear in that order, and the North Kingdom is still named Arthedain,
though both were subsequently corrected. The statement in the open-
ing passage of T 2 concerning the length of the Ages and the finding of
the Ring by Deagol was omitted, and in its place the following was
introduced:
The Fourth Age ushered in the Dominion of Men and the decline of
all the other 'speaking-folk' of the Westlands.
Following the usual pattern, a number of additions, some of them sub-
stantial, were made to the manuscript T 3, but virtually all of them
were taken up into the following version, the greatly expanded T 4,
whose entries for the Second Age are given here. This is a good clear
manuscript with few subsequent alterations in this part of the text;
those which were made before the following text was taken from it are
noticed if significant.
The Tale of Years
in the
Latter Ages.
The First Age was the longest. It ended with the Great Battle in
which Fionwe and the sons of the Valar broke Thangorodrim
and overthrew Morgoth.(5) Then most of the exiled Elves
returned into the West and dwelt in Eressea that was afterwards
named Avallon, being within sight of Valinor.(6) The Atani or
Edain, Fathers of Men, sailed also over Sea and founded the
realm of Numenor or Westernesse, on a great isle, westmost of
all mortal lands.
The Second Age ended with the first overthrow of Sauron and
the loss of the One Ring.
The Third Age came to its end in the War of the Ring, and the
destruction of the Dark Tower of Sauron, who was finally
defeated.
The Fourth Age ushered in the Dominion of Men and the
decline of all other 'speaking folk' of the Westlands.
[Added: The first three ages are now by some called The Elder
Days, but of old and ere the Third Age was ended that name
was given only to the First Age and the world before the casting
forth of Morgoth.](7)
The Second Age.
These were the Dark Years of Middle-earth, but the high tide of
Numenor. Of events in Middle-earth scant record is preserved
even among the Elves, and their dates here given are only
approximate.
10. Foundation of the Grey Havens, and the Kingdom of
Lindon. This was ruled by Gil-galad son of Felagund,(8)
chief of all the Noldor who did not yet depart to
Avallon.
50. Foundation of Numenor. [Added: About the same time
the works of Moria were begun by Durin the Dwarf and
his folk from the ruins of the ancient dwarf-cities in the
Blue Mountains. This was struck out and replaced by:
About this time many dwarves fleeing from the ruins of
the dwarf-cities in the Blue Mountains came to Moria,
and its power and the splendour of its works were
greatly increased.](9)
460. Death of Elros Earendil's son, first King of Numenor.
500. Sauron, servant of Morgoth, begins to stir again in
Middle-earth.
700. First ships of the Numenoreans return to Middle-earth.
At first they came only seldom, and the Numenoreans
did not stay long in any place.
750. Foundation of Imladris (or Rivendell) and of Eregion
(or Hollin) as dwellings of the Noldor or High Elves.
Remnants of the Telerian Elves (of Doriath in ancient
Beleriand) establish realms in the woodlands far east-
ward, but most of these peoples are Avari or East-elves.
The chief of these were Thranduil who ruled in the
north of Greenwood the Great beyond Anduin, but
Lorien was fairer and had the greater power; for Cele-
born had to wife the Lady Galadriel of the Noldor, sister
of Gil-galad [> sister of Felagund Gil-galad's sire].(10)
900. Sauron in secret begins the building of the fortress,
Barad-dur, in Mordor, and makes there the forges of
Orodruin, the Mountain of Fire. But he professes great
friendship with the Eldar, and especially with those of
Eregion, who were great in smith-craft.
1200-1500. The Rings of Power are forged in Eregion; but the
Ruling Ring is forged by Sauron in Orodruin.
1550. War of the Elves and Sauron begins. The 'Days of Flight'
begin, or the 'Dark Years' properly so called, being
the time of the dominion of Sauron. Eregion is laid
waste. The Naugrim (or Dwarves) close the gates of
Moria. Many of the remaining Noldor depart west over
Sea.
1700. The great voyages of the Numenoreans begin. Gil-galad
defends Lindon and the Grey Havens. Imladris is
besieged but holds out under the command of Elrond
Earendil's son. The Numenoreans come with many
ships to Lindon and they aid Gil-galad and Elrond.
Sauron retreats from Eriador (west of the Misty Moun-
tains).
1900. Barad-dur is completed with the power of the Ruling
Ring.
c.2000. The Shadow falls on Numenor. The Numenoreans
begin to murmur against the Valar, who will not permit
them to sail west from their land; and they become
jealous of the immortality of the Eldar. [Added:
(c.2250).] A division appears among the Numenoreans
between the Elf-friends, the smaller party, and the King's
Folk. The latter become slowly estranged from the Valar
and the Eldar, and abandon the use of the Elven tongues;
the kings take names of Numenorean form. The Elf-
friends, dwelling most in the east of Numenor,(11) remain
loyal to the kings except in the matter of rebellion
against the decrees of the Valar.
2000-3000. The Numenoreans now make permanent
dwellings on the shores of Middle-earth, seeking wealth
and dominion; they build many havens and fortresses.
The Elf-friends go chiefly to the North-west, but their
strongest place is at Pelargir above the Mouths of
Anduin. The King's Folk establish lordships in Umbar (12)
and Harad and in many other places on the coasts of the
Great Lands.
During the same time Sauron extends his dominion
slowly over the great part of Middle-earth; but his
power reaches out eastward, since he is withheld from
the coasts by the Numenoreans. He nurses his hatred for
them, but cannot yet challenge them openly. Towards
the end of this time the Ulairi, the Ringwraiths, servants
of Sauron and slaves of the Nine Rings first appear.
3118. Tar-kalion, calling himself Ar-Pharazon the Golden,
thirteenth king of the line of Earendil, ascends the
throne of Numenor. He resolves to challenge Sauron the
Great, and builds an armament.
3125. Ar-Pharazon sets sail for Middle-earth. The might and
splendour of the Numenoreans fills the servants of
Sauron with fear. Ar-Pharazon lands at Umbar, and in
pursuance of his own secret design Sauron humbles
himself and submits. Sauron is taken as a hostage to
Numenor.
3140-3310. Sauron slowly gains the confidence of Ar-
Pharazon, until he dominates his counsels. He urges
Ar-Pharazon to make war on the Lords of the West to
gain everlasting life.
Most of the Numenoreans fall under the sway of
Sauron, and they persecute the Elf-friends; and they
become tyrants over men in Middle-earth.
3310. Ar-Pharazon feeling the approach of death at last
takes the counsel of Sauron and prepares a vast fleet
for an assault upon Avallon and Valinor. Valandil
[> Amandil](13) the faithful breaks the ban of the Valar
and sails west, hoping to repeat the embassy of Earendil,
and obtain the help of the Lords of the West. He is never
heard of again. His son Elendil, as his father had bidden,
makes ready ships on the east coast of Numenor, prepar-
ing for flight with all the faithful that he can gather.
3319. The great fleet of Ar-Pharazon sets sail into the West and
encompassing Avallon assails the shores of Valinor.
Numenor is destroyed, and swallowed up by the sea.
The world is broken and Valinor separated from the
lands of the living.
Elendil and his sons Isildur and Anarion escape and
fly east with nine great ships (14) to Middle-earth. They
bring with them the Seven Stones or Palantiri, gifts of
the Eldar of Avallon, and Isildur brings also a seedling
of the White Tree of Avallon.
3320. Foundation of the realm of Arnor in the north of the
Westlands, with the city Annuminas; and of Gondor
about the waters of Anduin in the south, with the city
Osgiliath. The Stones are divided: Elendil retains three
in the North-kingdom, at Annuminas, and on Amon
Sul, and in the tower of Emyn Beraid (the Tower Hills).(15)
His sons take four, and set them at Minas Ithil, at Minas
Anor, at Osgiliath, and at Orthanc.
In the same year Sauron returns to Middle-earth, and
being at first filled with fear by the power and wrath of
the Lords of the West he hides himself in Mordor and is
quiet.
3430-3 [> 3429-30]. Sauron, being at last ready again, makes
war upon Gondor. Orodruin bursts into smoke and
flame, and Men of Gondor seeing the sign re-name it
Amon Amarth, Mount Doom.(16) Sauron comes forth
and assails Minas Ithil, and destroys the White Tree that
Isildur planted there. Isildur takes a seedling of the Tree
and escapes by ship down Anduin with his wife and
sons. He sails to Elendil in the North. The Last Alliance
is formed between Gil-galad Elven-king and Elendil and
his sons. They march east to Imladris summoning all
folk to their aid.
3434. The Host of the Alliance crosses the Misty Mountains
and marches south. They encounter the host of Sauron
upon Dagorlad north of the gates of Mordor, and they
are victorious. Sauron takes refuge in Barad-dur.
3434- Siege of Barad-dur begins and lasts seven years.
3440. Anarion is slain in Gorgoroth.
3441. Sauron comes forth, and wrestles with Elendil and Gil-
galad. They overthrow him but are themselves slain.
The One Ring is taken from the hand of Sauron by
Isildur as the weregild of his father, and he will not
permit it to be destroyed. He plants the seedling of the
White Tree in Minas Anor in memory of his brother
Anarion, but he will not himself [added: long] dwell
there. He delivers the South-kingdom to Meneldil son of
Anarion and marches north up the vale of Anduin, pur-
posing to take up the realm of Elendil. He is slain by
Orcs near the Gladden fields and the Ring is lost in the
River.(17) The Ringwraiths fall into darkness and silence.
The Second Age ends.(18)
In this fourth text of the Tale of Years the pattern of dating seen in
T 1, T 2, with its great differences from the final form in Appendix B,
is preserved. Thus Rivendell was still founded far earlier, in 750;
Barad-dur was begun in 900 and its building still took a thousand
years; the making of the Rings of Power in Eregion, and the War of the
Elves and Sauron, are dated as they were, extending over far greater
periods of time. The work was becoming a condensed history rather
than a list of dates; but scarcely any new dates were introduced.
In new material in the entry for c.2000 the sentence 'The Shadow
falls on Numenor' is clearly related to the Akallabeth 'Scheme' (p.
150), where it is noted of the reign of Tar-Atanamir (c.1790-c.2061)
that 'In his time the Shadow first fell on Numenor'. The fullness of the
entries concerning the reign of Ar-Pharazon reinforces the view that
my father made these early versions of the Tale of Years when he was
writing the Akallabeth, as do a number of particular features, such as
the sentence concerning the Great Battle in the headnote to T 4 (see
note 5) and the occurrence of the name Ulairi of the Ringwraiths in
the entry for 2000-3000 (see p. 153, $30). The fact that Avallon was
still the name of Eressea (and not that of the haven) shows beyond
doubt that the Akallabeth was still at the stage of the earliest manu-
script (see note 6).
I think it extremely probable that this text T 4 (of which the part
pertaining to the Third Age is very much longer) belongs in time with
the texts F 2 and D 2 of the Appendices on Languages and on Calen-
dars, and with the third text of The Heirs of Elendil, given in the next
chapter. But external evidence of date seems to be entirely lacking.
From T 4 an amanuensis typescript T 5 was made, carefully
following the original. At some stage my father subjected one of the
copies to very heavy correction, but his chief (though not the only)
purpose in doing so seems to have been to abbreviate it by the
omission of phrases. By this time the 'second phase' of the Akallabeth
(see p. 154, $31) had entered, and the last years of Numenor were
altered on the typescript (cf. p. 175):
3118. Birth of Ar-Pharazon.
3255. Ar-Pharazon the Golden, twenty-fifth king of the line of
Elros, seizes the sceptre of Numenor. He resolves to chal-
lenge Sauron the Great, and builds an armament.
3261. Ar-Pharazon sets sail for Middle-earth. The might of the
Numenoreans fills the servants of Sauron with fear. Ar-
Pharazon lands at Umbar, and Sauron humbles himself and
submits. Sauron is taken as a hostage to Numenor.
3262-3310. Sauron slowly gains the confidence of Ar-Pharazon ...
The opening dates of the Second Age were also changed: Year 1, Foun-
dation of the Grey Havens; 32 Foundation of Numenor; 442 Death of
Elros; 600 First ships of the Numenoreans return to Middle-earth.
Other changes were the replacement of Ulairi by Nazgul in the entry
for 2000-3000 (changed to 2200-3000), and the removal of Avallon
at all occurrences, either by altering it to Eressea or by the omission of
any name.
The evident reason for the revision of the typescript (in respect of
the abbreviation of the text) is discussed later (see p. 246). The next
stage in the development was an attempt to reduce the Tale of Years
much more drastically. This is represented by a confused collection of
typescript pages (from which a good deal of the Third Age is missing)
made very evidently under stress: the deadline for the publication of
The Return of the King was fast approaching, and the situation was
indeed afflicting. Not only must the record of events be further pruned
and curtailed, but fundamental features of the chronology of the
Second Age were not yet established; and this work must be done
against time.
I give in illustration a portion of the first version of the Second Age
chronology comprised in this material. My father was typing very
rapidly, faster than he could manage, and there are very many errors,
which I have of course corrected; I have also introduced divisions to
indicate successive shifts in the dating, though there is no suggestion
of these in the typescript, where the rejected passages are not even
struck through. Thus the text that follows has a very much more
ordered appearance than does the original.
900. Sauron secretly begins the building of Barad-dur. He makes the
forges of the Mountain of Fire.
1200. Sauron seeks the friendship of the Elves, especially those of
Eregion, who are great in smith-craft.
1200-1500. The Rings of Power are forged in Eregion; but the
Ruling Ring is forged by Sauron in Mordor.
1550. The war of Sauron and the Elves begins. The 'Dark Years'
follow, the time of the dominion of Sauron. Many of the
remaining Eldar depart west over Sea. The great voyages of the
Numenoreans begin.
1600. Eregion is laid waste. The gates of Moria are shut. The forces
of Sauron overrun Eriador. Imladris is besieged, but holds out
under the command of Elrond Earendil's son, sent from
Lindon. The forces of Sauron overrun Eriador. Gil-galad
defends Lindon and the Grey Havens.
1603. A Numenorean navy comes to the Grey Havens. The
Numenoreans aid Gil-galad, and Sauron's forces are driven
out of Eriador and Sauron retreats from Eriador. The West-
lands have peace for some while.
From the time of the defeat in Eriador Sauron does not
molest the Westlands for many years, but plots in secret. He
slowly extends his dominion eastward, since he is withheld
from the coasts by the Numenoreans. He nurses his hatred for
them, but cannot yet challenge them openly.
1700. Barad-dur is completed with the power of the Ruling Ring.
1200. Sauron seeks the friendship of the Elves (in hope to subject
them). He is still fair to look on, and the Elves become en-
amoured of the knowledge he can impart.
1300. The Elves begin the forging of the Rings of Power. It is said that
this took many long years. S[auron] secretly makes the forges
[sic]
1500. The Three Great Rings are made by Celebrimbor of the Silver
Grasp (celebrin 'silver', paur 'the fist or closed hand'). The
Ruling Ring is made secretly by Sauron in Mordor.
1000. Sauron begins the building of Barad-dur in Mordor.
1200. Sauron courts the friendship of the Elves, hoping to get them,
the chief obstacle to his dominion, into his power. Gil-galad
refuses to treat with him. But Sauron is still fair to look on and
the Elves of Eregion are won over by their desire of skill and
knowledge.
1500. The Elves of Eregion under the guidance of Sauron begin the
forging of the Rings of Power. This takes many long years.
Sauron secretly forges the One Ring in Orodruin.
1690. The Three Rings are completed. Celebrimbor becomes aware
of the designs of Sauron. Barad-dur is completed with the
power of [sic]
1695. The War of the Elves and Sauron begins. Many of the remain-
ing Eldar depart west over Sea.
1696. Elrond Earendil's son is sent to Eregion by Gil-galad.
1697. Eregion is laid waste. The gates of Moria are shut. Elrond
retreats with the remnant of the Eldar to Imladris.
1600. The great voyages of the Numenoreans begin. The ships are
welcomed by Gil-galad and Cirdan.
1699. Imladris is besieged but holds out under the command of
Elrond. Sauron overruns Eriador. Gil-galad defends Lindon
and the Grey Havens.
1700. A great navy of the Numenoreans comes to the Grey Havens.
Here this text seems to have been abandoned and replaced by another
and more coherent version, with entries further reduced and dates
following the latest formulations in the text just given. These dates
from 1500 to 1700 were then corrected on the typescript, being
reduced (advanced) by a hundred years, and so moving them away
from those in Appendix B, as seen in the following table (in which I
give only brief indications of the actual entries).
Appendix B
1500 [> 1400] (Forging of the Three Rings begun) c.1500
1600 [> 1500] (Forging of the One Ring) c.1600
1690 [> 1590] (Three Rings completed) c.1590
1690 [> 1590] (Barad-dur completed) c.1600
1695 [> 1595) (War of Elves and Sauron begins) 1693
1697 [> 1597] (Eregion laid waste) 1697
1699 [> 1599] (Sauron overruns Eriador) 1699
1700 [> 1600] (Coming of Numenorean navy) 1700
At this stage Imladris was still founded in the year 750. The correction
of all the entries from 1500 to 1700 was subsequently abandoned; the
dates before correction were now those of the final chronology or very
close to them, with the exception of the completion of Barad-dur and
the completion of the Three Rings. In this text, by either dating,
the Three Rings were not achieved for a further ninety years after the
forging of the One Ring, whereas in the final chronology (by adopting
in this one case the revised date, 1590) the One Ring was made ten
years after the Three.
This second text then continues:
1869. Tar-Ciryatan, twelfth king of Numenor, receives the sceptre.
The first shadow falls on Numenor. The Kings become
greedy of wealth and power.
2060-2251. Reign of Tar-Atanamir the Great, thirteenth King of
Numenor.(19) The shadow deepens. The King's ships exact
heavy tribute from Men on the coasts of Middle-earth. The
Numenoreans become jealous of the immortality of the
Eldar; and the King speaks openly against [the] command of
the Valar that they should not sail west from their land.
2250-3000. During this time the power and splendour of the
Numenoreans continues to increase; and they build many
fortresses on the west shores of Middle-earth. Sauron
extends his power eastward, being withheld from the coasts,
and nurses his hatred of Numenor. But the Numenoreans
become divided against
Here the entry breaks off, and is immediately followed by a long
account (more than 2000 words) of the Numenoreans, of their origin,
their division, the coming of Sauron, and the Downfall.
I believe that this strange development can be explained in this way.
At that time, as things stood, The Lord of the Rings would be pub-
lished without any account, however brief, of the story of Numenor.
In the manuscript T 4 my father had written (pp. 174-6) what I have
called 'a condensed history rather than a list of dates'; for it is to be
remembered that in the narrative of The Lord of the Rings, despite all
the many mentions of the names Numenor and Westernesse, he had
told nothing of its history, and of the Downfall no more than Faramir's
words in Minas Tirith, when he told Eowyn that he was thinking 'of
the land of Westernesse that foundered, and of the great dark wave
climbing over the green lands and above the hills'. He must now
attempt to contract even what he had written in T 4, and as a com-
parison of the last entries in the present text just given with those in
T 4 (pp. 174 - 5) shows, he was not succeeding. The reduction into a
mere chronological scheme of a large history that could not be under-
stood by a recital of events was a task profoundly uncongenial to him.
He despaired of it, and broke off in mid-sentence.
It may well have been at that point, having typed the words 'But the
Numenoreans become divided against', that he decided that The Lord
of the Rings must contain some account of the story of Westernesse,
separate from the Tale of Years, and set it down there and then, begin-
ning with the words 'As a reward for their sufferings in the cause
against Morgoth, the Valar, the Guardians of the World, granted to the
Edain a land to dwell in, removed from the dangers of Middle-earth.'
Removed from the Tale of Years, it found a place in Appendix A,
Annals of the Kings and Rulers, RK pp. 315 - 18.(20)
There are in fact two typescripts of this text, both composed ab
initio on the typewriter; the second of these my father described in a
pencilled note as a 'variant' of the first, and it was this that he used,
with many minor alterations of wording and some omissions, in
Appendix A. Neither version has the list of the Kings and Queens of
Numenor (RK p. 315), and both have a more detailed account of the
rebellion against Tar-Palantir and the marriage of Miriel his daughter
to Pharazon (said in both texts to have been 'by force'), which was
omitted in Appendix A. Both versions, also, have an account of
Sauron's policy in his attack on the coastal fortresses and harbours of
the Numenoreans which was likewise omitted, and is not found in the
Akallabeth. I cite here two passages from the first version of the text.
Proudest of all the Kings was Ar-Pharazon the Golden, and
no less than the kingship of all the world was his desire. But still
he retained enough wisdom to fear the Lords of the West, and
turned therefore his thoughts to Middle-earth. Now Sauron
knowing of the dissension in Numenor thought how he might
use it to achieve his revenge. He began therefore to assail the
havens and forts of the Numenoreans, and invaded the coast-
lands under their dominion. As he foresaw this aroused the
great wrath of the King, who resolved to challenge Sauron
the Great for the lordship of Middle-earth. For five years Ar-
Pharazon prepared, and at last he himself set sail with a great
navy and armament, the greatest that had yet appeared in the
world.
If Sauron had thought thus to decoy the King to Middle-earth
and there destroy him, his hope deceived him. And Ar-Pharazon
landed at Umbar, and so great was the splendour and might of
the Numenoreans at the noon of their glory that at the rumour
of them alone all men flocked to their summons and did
obeisance; and Sauron's own servants fled away. The land of
Mordor he had indeed fortified and made so strong that he need
fear no assault upon it; but he was in doubt now, and even the
Barad-dur seemed no longer secure.
Sauron therefore changed his design, and had recourse to
guile. He humbled himself, and came himself on foot before
Ar-Pharazon, and did him homage and craved pardon for his
offences. And Ar-Pharazon spared his life; but took from him all
his titles, and made him prisoner, and carried him at length back
to Numenor to be hostage for the submission and faith of all
who had before owed him allegiance.
'This is a hard doom,' said Sauron, 'but great kings must have
their will', and he submitted as one under compulsion, conceal-
ing his delight; for things had fallen out according to his design.
Now Sauron had great wisdom and knowledge, and could
find words of seeming reason for the persuasion of all but the
most wary; and he could still assume a fair countenance when
he wished. He was brought as a prisoner to Numenor in 3261,
but he had not been there five years before he had the King's ear
and was deep in his counsel.
'Great kings must have their will': this was the burden of all
his advice; and whatever the King desired he said was his right,
and devised plans whereby he might gain it.
Then darkness came upon the minds of the Numenoreans,
and they held the Guardians in hatred, and openly denied the
One who is above all; and they turned to the worship of the
Dark, and of Morgoth the Lord of the Darkness. They made a
great temple in the land and there did evil; for they tormented
the remnant of the faithful, and there slew them or burned
them. And the like they did in Middle-earth, and filled the west
coasts with tales of dread, so that men cried 'Has then Sauron
become King of Numenor?'
So great was his power over the hearts of the most of that
people that maybe had he wished he could have taken the
sceptre; but all that he wished was to bring Numenor to ruin.
Therefore he said to the King: 'One thing only now you lack to
make you the greatest King in the world, the undying life that
is withheld from you in fear and jealousy by the lying Powers
in the West. But great kings take what is their right.' And Ar-
Pharazon pondered these words, but for long fear held him
back.
But at last even Ar-Pharazon the Golden, King of kings,
having lived one hundred and ninety-two years,(21) felt the
waning of his life and feared the approach of death and the
going out into the darkness that he had worshipped. Therefore
he began to prepare a vast armament for the assault upon
Valinor, that should surpass the one with which he had come to
Umbar even as a great galleon of Numenor surpassed a fisher-
man's boat.
There follows a brief account of the expulsion of those of doubtful
loyalty from the western coasts of Numenor, the voyage of Amandil
into the West,(22) the sailing of the Great Armament, and the cataclysm
of the Downfall. At the end of this, following the words 'But Elendil
and his sons escaped with nine ships, and were borne on the wings of
a great storm and cast up on the shores of Middle-earth', is a notable
statement of the destruction caused by the drowning of Numenor:
These were much changed in the tumult of the winds and seas
that followed the Downfall; for in some places the sea rode in
upon the land, and in others it piled up new coasts. Thus while
Lindon suffered great loss, the Bay of Belfalas was much filled
at the east and south, so that Pelargir which had been only a few
miles from the sea was left far inland, and Anduin carved a new
path by many mouths to the Bay. But the Isle of Tolfalas was
almost destroyed, and was left at last like a barren and lonely
mountain in the water not far from the issue of the River.
No such statement is found elsewhere.(23) In the Akallabeth (The
Silmarillion p. 280), in a passage taken virtually without change from
The Drowning of Anadune (IX.374, $52), there is no reference to any
named region or river.(24)
There is no further text of the Tale of Years extant before the
typescript from which Appendix B was printed. Of this it may be
noted that in the preamble to the entries for the Second Age the refer-
ence to mithril reads:
This they did because they learned that mithril had been discovered
in Moria. It had been believed before that this could only be got in
the Ered Luin; but no more could now be found there in the old
dwarf-mines.
My father struck out the second sentence on the proof.
NOTES.
1. Against this opening statement concerning the Three Ages my
father later scribbled 'These Ages are called the Elder Days'. On
this see p. 173 and note 7.
2. T 1 has the more natural 'Arising of Sauron'.
3. Imladrist was corrected at once to Imladris. In T 1 the form is
Imladris, as also in T 2 in the entry for 1600, so that this was a
mere casual reversion to the earlier form.
4. It is plain that in the 'Scheme' the death-date of one king indicates
also the accession of the next, and thus the interval between two
death-dates is the length of the reign of the king: for example, the
fourth king died in 1347, and the fifth in 1568, and thus the fifth
king reigned for 221 years.
It certainly seems most natural to suppose that the 'Scheme'
was precisely that, and that the representation of the reigns as all
of the same length (differing only by one year) was a mere
formula of convenience for working out the chronology as a
whole. But Atanamir reigned for 50 years longer than any other,
and his son for 50 years less; and this obviously relates to the
passage in the Akallabeth (SA $24, going back to the original
manuscript):
And Atanamir lived to a great age, clinging to his life beyond
the end of all joy; and he was the first of the Numenoreans to
do this, refusing to depart until he was witless and unmanned,
and denying to his son the kingship at the height of his days.
The much greater age of Atanamir must imply that all the other
kings died by act of their own will long before the end of their
physical span, and thus allowed their sons a period of rule equiv-
alent to their own. It would be mistaken to press this early and
experimental text too closely on the matter, but it certainly
suggests a difference from the developed conception in The Line
of Elros, where it is said (Unfinished Tales p. 218) that it was the
custom 'until the days of Tar-Atanamir that the King should yield
the sceptre to his successor before he died'; there were thus a
number of years (recorded in the entries of The Line of Elros)
between the king's surrender of the sceptre and his death.
5. With this sentence cf. the original version of the Akallabeth,
p. 143, $3.
6. It is notable that here and subsequently Avallon is still the name
of the whole Isle of Eressea, as it was in the original manuscript
A of the Akallabeth, although the later form Avallone and the
later meaning (the Haven) entered before that manuscript was
completed (see p. 146, $12).
7. Cf. the preamble to the Tale of Years in Appendix B: 'In the
Fourth Age the earlier ages were often called the Elder Days; but
that name was properly given only to the days before the casting
out of Morgoth.' In the Akallabeth 'the Elder Days' was appar-
ently used of the earlier part of the Second Age (p. 156, $53).
8. For other references to the abandoned idea that Gil-galad was the
son of Felagund see XI.242 - 3, and pp. 349 - 50.
9. It looks as if the added passage concerning the Dwarves was
rejected and replaced immediately. It is strange that my father
should have written first that Durin founded Moria at the begin-
ning of the Second Age, with 'his folk' coming from the ruins of
Nogrod and Belegost.
10. With this entry compare the headnote to the Second Age in
Appendix B. - The words 'the Lady Galadriel of the Noldor,
sister of Gil-galad' were not, as might be thought, a slip, but
record a stage in her entry into the legends of the First Age. In one
of the earliest texts of the work Of the Rings of Power and the
Third Age my father wrote of Galadriel: 'A Queen she was and
lady of the woodland elves, yet she was herself of the Noldor and
had come from Beleriand in the days of the Exile.' To this he
added subsequently: 'For it is said by some that she was a hand-
maid of Melian the Immortal in the realm of Doriath'; but
striking this out at once he substituted: 'For it is said by some that
she was a daughter of Felagund the Fair and escaped from
Nargothrond in the day of its destruction.' In the following text
this was changed to read: 'And some have said that she was the
daughter of Felagund the Fair and fled from Nargothrond before
its fall, and passed over the Mountains into Eriador ere the
coming of Fionwe'; this in turn was altered to: 'For she was the
daughter of Felagund the Fair and the elder sister of Gil-galad,
though seldom had they met, for ere Nargothrond was made or
Felagund was driven from Dorthonion, she passed east over the
mountains and forsook Beleriand, and first of all the Noldor
came to the inner lands; and too late she heard the summons of
Fionwe.' - In the Annals of Aman and the Grey Annals she had
become, as she remained, the sister of Felagund.
11. In the Akallabeth the Elendili dwelt mostly in the west of
Numenor, and were forced to remove into the east (p. 152); but
the statement here that they dwelt mainly in the east may be due
simply to compression.
12. This is the first reference to the establishment of a Numenorean
settlement at Umbar before the landing of Ar-Pharazon (see
p. 156, $41).
13. On the name Valandil for Amandil (as in the first version of the
Akallabeth) see p. 156, $44.
14. It is curious that all the texts of the Akallabeth have twelve ships,
and only on the late amanuensis typescript did my father change
the number to nine (see p. 157, $80); whereas in the present text
T 4, certainly no later than the earliest text of the Akallabeth, the
number is nine as first written.
15. The statement in this entry concerning the division of the palan-
tiri appeared first in additions to the preceding text T 3; and there
they are called Gwahaedir, while the Tower Hills are called Emyn
Gwahaedir, replaced by Emyn Hen Dunadan, and then again by
Emyn Beraid. This last name does not appear in the actual
narrative of The Lord of the Rings.
16. This was probably the first appearance of Amon Amarth, which
only occurs in Appendix A (I, i, at end, RK p. 317).
17. All the material in these last entries first appears as rough and
complex marginal additions to the manuscript T 3, but at this
point there is an addition in T 3 which my father did not take up,
perhaps because he missed it:
The shards of the Sword of Elendil are brought to Valandil
Isildur's heir at Imladris. He becomes king of the North King-
dom of Arnor, and dwells at Fornost.
The name Valandil of Isildur's heir thus does not appear in T 4;
but the entry for 3310 was not added to T 3, and thus Valandil
as the name of Elendil's father does not appear in that text.
18. On the ending of the Second Age with the death of Isildur and the
loss of the One Ring in the Anduin see p. 170.
19. In Appendix B the entry for S.A.2251 begins 'Tar-Atanamir takes
the sceptre. Rebellion and division of the Numenoreans begins.'
In Unfinished Tales (p. 226, note 10) I discussed this, concluding
that the entry was certainly an error, although at that time I was
apparently unaware of the present text, or at any rate did not
consult it,. I suggested that the correct reading should be: 2251
Death of Tar-Atanamir. Tar-Ancalimon takes the sceptre. Rebel-
lion and division of the Numenoreans begins.' No further text is
extant before the final typescript from which Appendix B was
printed, and it cannot be said how the error arose, moving from
'2060-2251 Reign of Tar-Atanamir' to '2251 Tar-Atanamir
takes the sceptre'.
20. I have found nothing in the correspondence of that 'time touching
on Appendix A, and I cannot answer the question how it was
possible, if the Tale of Years had to be so contracted for reasons
of space, to include a further long section in that Appendix at that
stage.
21. 'having lived one hundred and ninety-two years': from 3118 to
3310. In the text T 4 3118 was the year of his accession, cor-
rected in the later revision of the typescript T 5 (p. 178) to the
year of his birth.
22. The date of Amandil's voyage is given in this text, 3316; it was
added also in the revision of the typescript T 5, entry 3310.
23. This appears to be the sole reference in any text to Tolfalas, apart
from a mention of its capture by Men of the South in an outline
made in the course of the writing of The Two Towers (VII.435).
The isle and its name appeared already on the First Map of
Middle-earth (VH.298, 308), but on all maps its extent appears
much greater than in the description of it here.
24. On the extremely difficult question of the relation between the
destruction caused in Middle-earth in the Great Battle at the end
of the First Age, and that caused by the Drowning of Numenor,
see V.22 - 3, 32 - 3, 153-4.
VII.
THE HEIRS OF ELENDIL.
While the development of the Appendices as a whole, and the
Prologue, was to some degree an interconnected work, the Tale of
Years was of its nature (since chronology became a paramount
concern of my father's) closely interwoven with the evolution of the
history of Numenor and the Numenorean kingdoms in Middle-earth,
as has been seen already in the relation of the Tale of Years of the
Second Age to the development of the Akallabeth. For the history and
chronology of the Realms in Exile the primary document is a sub-
stantial work entitled The Heirs of Elendil.
The textual history of this is not easy to fathom. It is divided into
two parts, the Northern Line (the Kings and the Chieftains) and the
Southern Line (the Kings and the Stewards). The oldest manuscript,
which I will call A, is headed The Heirs of Elendil The Southern Line
of Gondor; it is clearly if rapidly written for the most part, but in the
concluding section recounting the names and dates of the Stewards
of Gondor becomes very rough and is obviously in the first stage of
composition.
The second manuscript, B, has both the Northern and the Southern
Lines, in that order; but though my father fastened the two sections
together, they are distinct in appearance. I believe that the second part
began as a fair copy of A, but quickly developed and expanded into a
much fuller (and increasingly rough) text. To this he added the North-
ern Line. This section in B seems to be in the first stage of composition
(a rejected page shows the names of the later kings and chieftains in
the process of emergence) - and there is no trace of any earlier work
on the Northern Line, a companion text to A. On the other hand there
are clear indications that the Northern Line and its history did already
exist when A was set down.
Heavily emended, the composite text B paved the way for a fine
manuscript, C; this in turn was much emended in the Northern Line,
less so in the remainder, and an amanuensis typescript D was made
(much later) from the corrected text (see p. 190).
There is as usual no hint or trace of external dating for any of this
work on The Heirs of Elendil, and the most that can be done is to try
to relate it to other texts. The relative date of B is shown by the fact
that the North Kingdom was still called Arthedain and that Anarion
was still the elder son of Elendil, for this was also the case in the third
text of the Tale of Years, T 3 (p. 172). The name of the tenth king of
the Northern Line is in B Earendil, which is found in the early texts F
1, F 2 of the Appendix on Languages as that of the tenth king (p. 32,
footnote to $9). In the fourth text T 4 of the Tale of Years the name of
the realm is Amor, Isildur is the elder son, and King Earendur enters.
There can be no doubt therefore that all the fundamental structure
and chronology of the Realms in Exile reached written form in the first
phase of the work on what would become the Appendices (cf. p. 177).
That the final text C, and many at least of the corrections and addi-
tions made to it, belongs to the same time is equally clear. One might
suppose this to be the case on general grounds: from the care and calm
that are evident in the fine manuscript as it was originally made, in
contrast to the latter ragged and chaotic work on the Appendices, and
from the fact that corrections to the preceding text B were made
(according to my father's constant practice) in preparation for this
further version. But the occurrence on the first page of C of the names
Valandil of Elendil's father and of Avallon for Eressea (the latter
remaining uncorrected) shows that it belongs to the time when the
original text of the Akallabeth still stood and T 4 of the Tale of Years
had not yet been revised, for both of these have Valandil (pp. 156,
175) and Avallon (p. 173 and note 6). To this may be added the use of
'Noldorin' for 'Sindarin'.
Work on The Heirs of Elendil gave rise to alterations in the text of
The Lord of the Rings. A good example of this is found in the passage
of the chapter A Knife in the Dark (FR p. 197) where Strider speaks
of the history of Weathertop. As this passage stood at the end of work
on the chapter (scarcely differing from the original text, VI.169) he
said:
There is no barrow on Weathertop, nor on any of these hills. The
Men of the West did not live here. I do not know who made this
path, nor how long ago, but it was made to provide a road that
could be defended, from the north to the foot of Weathertop; some
say that Gil-galad and Elendil made a fort and a strong place here
in the ancient days, when they marched into the East.
This was altered and expanded, in a late typescript, to the passage in
FR, where Strider's account of the great tower of Amon Sul that was
burned and broken derives from the addition made to the entry for
Arveleg I (eighteenth king of the Northern Line) in Heirs of Elendil B,
reappearing in the final text C (see pp. 194, 209). But the addition
made to C in the entry for Argeleb I, seventeenth king, 'Argeleb forti-
fies the Weather Hills', belongs with the alteration of Strider's words
about the path, which now became:
The Men of the West did not live here; though in their latter days
they defended the hills for a while against the evil that came out of
Angmar. This path was made to serve the forts along the walls.
The date of the making of the typescript D, however, is very much
later. It is a good text, in top copy and carbon, made by an experienced
typist, which fact alone would strongly suggest that it comes from the
time after the publication of The Lord of the Rings; but in addition it
was made on the same machine as that used for the Annals of Aman,
the Grey Annals, the text LQ 2 of the Quenta Silmarillion, and the
Akallabeth, about 1958 (see pp. 141-2). It is remarkable (seeing that
all the essential material of C had been taken up into Appendix A, if
presented there in a totally different form) that my father should have
selected this text as one of those to be copied 'as a necessary prelimi-
nary to "remoulding" [of The Silmarillion]', as he said in his letter to
Rayner Unwin of December 1957 (X.141). He did indeed make use of
it later still, writing on the folded newspaper that contains the texts of
The Heirs of Elendil 'Partly revised August 1965' - i.e. in preparation
for the Second Edition of The Lord of the Rings published in 1966:
from this time comes a long insertion in typescript greatly expanding
the account of the events leading to the Kin-strife in Gondor, which in
somewhat contracted form was introduced into Appendix A in the
Second Edition (see further p. 259).
It has been difficult to find a satisfactory way of presenting this
complex material, especially in view of the lack of correspondence in
the texts of the Northern and Southern Lines (B-C; A-B-C). As with
the two texts F 1 and F 2 of the Appendix on Languages, it has seemed
best to give first the full text of C, with the corrections and expansions
noted as such (though without any attempt to distinguish the relative
times of their making), and to indicate significant differences in B in
the Commentary following the text. In addition, I give an account of
the brief manuscript A of the Southern Line at the beginning of the
Commentary on that part of the work (p. 211).
As I have already mentioned, there is no writing extant before the
manuscript A. It will be seen, however, that the names of the southern
kings and their dates were already very largely fixed in A as first
written down, and that (although the historical notes are very scanty
and brief by comparison with the final form) such matters as the Kin-
strife and the claim of Arvedui (last king in the North) to the southern
crown were fully if not very substantially present; it may be supposed
therefore that initial notes and lists have not survived (see also p. 216,
under Ondohir). It is generally impossible to say how much of the
matter that entered at each successive stage had newly arisen, and how
much was present but at first, when the scope of the work was not
yet fully realised, held in abeyance. But there is reason to think (see
p. 213) that a firm if undeveloped structure of the history of the
Realms in Exile had arisen a good while before the first texts of The
Heirs of Elendil were composed. There are cases in text B where the
actual working out of the history can be clearly seen, but always
within that structure.
The Heirs of Elendil.
Summary of the Annals in the 'Book of the Kings' and the 'Roll
of Stewards of Gondor'. The dates are corrected to the reckon-
ing of the Ages according to the Eldar, as also used in Arnor. In
Gondor the dates were reckoned from the foundation of
Osgiliath, Second Age 3320. Twenty-one years thus have to be
added to the year-numbers here given to find the dates of the
first Gondor era.
Elendil of Numenor
Isildur Anarion
Kiryandil Earnur Veandur Valandil Meneldil
of Arnor of Gondor
Year.
Second Age.
3119. Elendil born in Numenor. His father was Valandil
[> Amandil) chief of the party of the Elf-friends.
3209. Isildur, elder son of Elendil, born in Numenor.
3219. Anarion, second son of Elendil, born in Numenor.
3299. Kiryandil, son of Isildur, born in Numenor.
3318. Meneldil, son of Anarion, born. He was the last man to
be born in Numenor.
3319. Downfall of Numenor.
3320. Establishment of the Numenorean 'realms in exile' in
the west of Middle-earth: Arnor in the north of the west-
lands (with chief city at Annuminas) by Elendil; Gondor
in the south (with chief city at Osgiliath) by his sons.
Isildur planted a seedling of the White Tree of Avallon,
gift of the Eldar, in Minas Ithil. The Palantiri, or Seven
Stones of Sight, were divided, and set up in towers: three
in Arnor, at Annuminas, and at Amon Sul, and upon the
Emyn Beraid looking towards the Sea; four in the realm
of Gondor, at Osgiliath, at Minas Ithil, at Minas Anor,
and at Orthanc in Angrenost (Isengard).
3339. Earnur, second son of Isildur, born in Gondor.
3379. Veandur, third son of Isildur, born in Minas Ithil.
3429. Sauron attacks Gondor from the neighbouring land of
Mordor. He destroys Minas Ithil and burns the White
Tree. Isildur escapes by ship down Anduin, and sails
north from Anduin's Mouths to Elendil in Arnor, with
his wife and sons; he bears with him a seedling of the
White Tree, grown from its first fruit in Middle-earth.
Anarion holds out in Osgiliath.
3430. The last Alliance is begun. Elendil and Isildur obtain the
help of Gil-galad and Elrond and gather great forces.
They march east to Imladris. Valandil son of Isildur
born in Imladris.
3434. The Battle of Dagorlad. Gil-galad and Elendil are vic-
torious. The Siege of Barad-dur is begun.
3440. Anarion is slain before Barad-dur.
3441. Fall of Barad-dur and overthrow of Sauron. Elendil and
Gil-galad are slain. Isildur delivers Gondor to Meneldil
son of Anarion. He plants the White Tree again in
Minas Anor in memory of his brother, and marches up
Anduin, intending to return to Arnor.
Isildur and his three elder sons are slain by Orcs in the
Gladden Fields. His fourth son Valandil succeeds to
Arnor, but being a child remains for a time with Elrond
at Imladris.
The Second Age ends and the Third Age begins.
Here follows the roll of the Kings of the Northern Line, and
after the ending of the kings the names of the chieftains of the
Dunedain of the North who maintained throughout this Age
the line of Valandil son of Isildur unbroken.
In the tenth year of the Third Age Valandil being come to
manhood took up the kingship of Arnor and dwelt at Annumi-
nas by Lake Nenuial.
The Heirs of Elendil.
The Northern Line of Arnor: the Isildurioni.
1. Elendil. born S.A.3119 lived 322 years +slain 3441
or T.A.1
2. Isildur 3209 232 +slain 3441
or T.A.1
3. Valandil 3430 260 died T.A.249
4. Eldakar T.A. 87 252 339
5. Arantar 185 250 435
6. Tarkil 280 235 515
7. Tarondor 372 230 602
8. Valandur 462 190 +slain 652
9. Elendur 552 225 died 777
10. Earen dur 640 221 861
After Earendur the Northern Kingdom of Arnor was broken up.
The sons of the king established smaller independent kingdoms.
The direct line of the eldest son ruled the realm of Arthedain
in the north-west; their city was Fornost. Annuminas became
deserted owing to the dwindling of the people. The chief of
the lesser realms were [Cardolan east of the Baranduin; and
Rhudaur north of the Bruinen. Arthedain still claimed the over-
lordship, but this was disputed. >] Cardolan south of the Great
Road and east of the Baranduin; and Rhudaur north of the Great
Road between the Weather Hills and the Bruinen. There was
often strife between the kingdoms; the chief matter of debate
was the possession of the Weather Hills and the land westward
thence towards Bree. For both Rhudaur and Cardolan desired to
control Amon Sul (which stood upon their borders), because of
the Tower built there by Elendil, in which was kept the chief
palantir of the North. / From this time on the official names of
the kings were no longer given, after the manner of Numenor, in
High-elven or 'Quenya' form; but the kings of Arthedain used
Elvish names of Noldorin form and still maintained their friend-
ship with the Eldar of Lindon and Imladris.
11. Amlaith of. born 726 lived 220 years died 946
Fornost.
12. Beleg 811 218 1029
13. Mallor 895 215 1110
In his time an evil shadow fell upon Greenwood the Great, and
it became known as Mirkwood. The Sorcerer of Dol Guldur
(later known to be Sauron returned) begins to work evil. The
Periannath cross the Mountains and come into Arnor.
14. Celepharn. born 979 lived 212 years died 1191
15. Celebrindol
[> Celebrindor] 1062 210 1272
16 Malvegil 1144 205 1349
In the days of Malvegil Orcs again became a menace, and in-
vaded the lands of Arnor. The Ulairi or Ringwraiths began to stir
again. The chief of the Olairi comes north and establishes him-
self as a king of evil men in Angmar in the far north regions. The
Witch-king makes war on the realms of the Dunedain, which
are disunited. The lesser realms resist the claim of the King at
Fornost to be overlord of all the former lands of Arnor. In token
of this claim all the kings of Arthedain, and the chieftains after
them, take names with the prefix aran, ar(a) signifying 'high
king'. [Added: The purpose of the Witch-king is to destroy
Arnor, for there is more hope of success in the North (where the
realm is disunited) than in the South while Gondor remains
strong. At this time no descendants of Isildur remain in Rhudaur
or Cardolan; therefore the kings of Arthedain again claim over-
lordship in all Arnor. The claim is rejected by Rhudaur, in which
power has been seized by men in secret league with Angmar.]
[Struck out: The kings of Arthedain also claim to be guardians
of the palantir of Amon Sul, though this is outside their territory,
standing on the borders of Cardolan and Rhudaur between
whom also it is a matter of bitter dispute.]
17. Argeleb I. born 1226 lived 130 years + slain 1356
[He was slain in battle with Cardolan in the strife of the palantir
of Amon Sul. >] Argeleb fortifies the Weather Hills. He was slain
in battle with Rhudaur (with secret aid of Angmar); the enemy
tries to seize the palantir of Amon Sul.
18. Arveleg I. born 1309 lived 100 years + slain 1409
The Witch-king of Angmar taking advantage of war among [the
Numenoreans or Dunedain >] the Dunedain comes down out
of the North. He overruns Cardolan and Rhudaur. [Cardolan
is ravaged and destroyed and becomes desolate. The Tower of
Amon Sul is razed and the palantir is broken. Evil spirits come
and take up their abode in the mounds of the hills of Cardolan.
In Rhudaur an evil folk, workers of sorcery, subjects of Angmar,
slay the remnants of the Dunedain and build dark forts in the
hills. But the Dunedain of Fornost, in spite of the death of their
king, hold out, and repel the forces of Angmar with the help of
Cirdan of Lindon. >] Cardolan is ravaged; the Tower of Amon
Sul is razed and the palantir is removed to Fornost. In Rhudaur
an evil folk ... [as above] build dark forts in the hills, while the
remaining Dunedain of Cardolan hold out in the Barrow Downs
and the Forest; the Dunedain of Arthedain repel the forces of
Angmar from Fornost with the help of Cirdan of Lindon.
19. Araphor. born 1391 lived 198 years died 1589
20. Argeleb II 1473 197 1670
In his day the people of the old lands of Arnor become further
diminished by the coming of the plague out of the south and
east, which also devastated Gondor. [The plague does not pass
beyond the Baranduin. >] The plague lessens in deadliness as it
goes north; but Cardolan becomes desolate. Evil spirits come out
of Angmar and take up their abode in the mounds of Tyrn
Goerthaid. / It was Argeleb II who granted the land west of the
Baranduin to the Periannath; they crossed the river and entered
the land in 1601.
21. Arvegil. born 1553 lived 190 years died 1743
22. Arveleg II 1633 180 1813
23. Araval 1711 180 1891
With the help of Lindon and Imladris he won a victory over
Angmar in 1851, and sought to reoccupy Cardolan, but the evil
wights terrify all who seek to dwell near.
24. Araphant. born 1789 lived 175 years died 1964.
Angmar recovers and makes war on the Dunedain. Araphant
seeks to renew ancient alliance and kinship with Gondor. In
1940 his heir Arvedui wedded Firiel daughter of King Ondohir
[> Ondonir] of Gondor. But Gondor is engaged in the long Wars
of the Wainriders, and sends little help. Ondohir [> Ondonir]
and his sons fell in battle in 1944, and Arvedui claimed the
crown of Gondor, on behalf of Firiel and himself as representing
'the elder line of Isildur', since no close male claimant to the
throne in Gondor could at first be found. The claim was rejected
by Gondor, but Arvedui and his descendants continued to con-
sider themselves as the true heirs of Anarion as well as of Isildur.
25. Arvedui.
born 1864 lived 110 years +drowned 1974 [> 1975]
He was the last king at Fornost. In [added: the winter of] 1974
the Witch-king destroyed Fornost, laid Arthedain waste, and
scattered the remnants of the Dunedain. Arvedui escaped from
Fornost and fled north, taking the palantiri of Annuminas and
Emyn Beraid. He attempted to go by ship from Forochel to
Gondor but was wrecked and the Stones were lost. The sons of
Arvedui took refuge with Cirdan of Lune. The following year
Elrond and Cirdan, with some belated help from Gondor, sent
by sea, defeated the forces of Angmar. The Witch-king was
overthrown by Elrond, and his realm brought to an end. The
northern lands though desolate were now made somewhat more
wholesome again. But it was found later that the Witch-king had
fled away secretly southwards, and had entered Minas Ithil (now
called Minas Morgul) and become Lord of the Ringwraiths.
The remnants of the Dunedain of the North become rangers
and errants, living largely in hiding, but waging ceaseless war on
all evil things that still are abroad in the land. The sons of their
chieftains are usually fostered in Imladris by Elrond, to whose
keeping are given the chief remaining heirlooms of their house,
especially the shards of Elendil's sword, Narsil.
End of the North Kingdom
Here follows the rail of the Chieftains of the Dunedain
of Eriador, heirs of Isildur
Little is preserved of the tale of their wanderings and deeds,
until the end of the Third Age.
The Chieftains of the Dunedain.
26. (and 24th heir of Isildur)
1. Aranarth. born 1938 lived 168 years died 2106
27. 2. Arahail 2012 165 2177
28. 3. Aranuir 2084 163 2247
29. 4. Aravir 2156 163 2319
30. 5. Aragorn I 2227 100 +slain 2327
Aragorn was slain by wolves which infested eastern Eriador.
31. 6. Araglas. born 2296 lived 159 years died 2455
32. 7. Arahad I 2365 158 2523
33. 5. Aragost 2431 157 2588
34. 9. Aravorn 2497 157 2654
35. 10. Arahad II 2563 156 2719
36. 11. Arassuil 2628 156 2784
In his time there was much war with Orcs that infesting the
Misty Mountains harried Eriador. The chief battles were in
2745-8. In 2747 the Periannath (Halflings) defeated a westerly
ranging force of the invaders that came down from the north
into their land west of Baranduin.
37. 12. Arathorn I. born 2693 lived 155 years died 2848
38. 13. Argonui 2757 155 2912
39. 14. Arador 2820 110 +slain 2930
He was slain by trolls in the mountains north of Imladris.
40. 15.Arathorn II. born 2873 lived 60 years +slain 2933.
He wedded Gilrain daughter of Dirhael, a descendant also, but
by a younger branch, of Arathorn I. He was slain by an orc-
arrow when hunting Orcs in the company of Elladan and
Elrohir, the sons of Elrond. He wedded in 2929. His infant son
(aged 2 at his father's death) was fostered and brought up at
Imladris.
41. 16. Aragorn II. born 2931 lived 190 years died 3121
or the Fourth Age 100
Aragorn became King of Arnor and Gondor in the name of
Elessar. He played a great part in the War of the Ring in which
at last Sauron and the power of Mordor was destroyed. He
wedded Arwen Undomiel daughter of Elrond and restored the
majesty and blood of the Numenoreans. The Third Age ended
with the departure of Elrond in 3022 [> 3021]; and the de-
scendants of Elessar through Arwen became also heirs of the
elf-realms of the westlands.
The Heirs of Elendil
The Southern Line of Gondor: the Anarioni
1. Elendil.
born S.A.3119 lived 322 years +slain 3441 = T.A.1
2. Anarion. 3219 221 +slain 3440
3. Meneldil. 3318 280 died T.A.158
[added: 4th child]
4. Kemendur. 3399 279 238
5. Earendil. T.A. 48 276 324
6. Anardil. 136 275 411
7. Ostohir [> Ostonir]
222 270 492
He rebuilt and enlarged Minas Anor, where afterwards the kings
dwelt always in summer rather than at Osgiliath.
8. Romendakil I. born 310 lived [231] years f-slain 541.
His original name was Tarostar. In his father's time wild men
out of the East first assailed Gondor. Tarostar defeated them and
drove them out, and took the name Romendakil, East-slayer. He
was, however, later slain in battle with fresh hordes of Easter-
lings.
9. Turambar. born 397 lived 270 years died 667
He avenged his father, and conquered much territory eastwards.
10. Atanatar I. born 480 lived 268 years died 748
11. Siriondil 570 260 830
12. Falastur 654 259 913
He was first called Tarannon. He took the name Falastur, on
coming to the throne, to commemorate his victories that had
extended the sway of Gondor far along the shore-lands on either
side of the Mouths of Anduin. He was the first childless king. He
was succeeded by the son of his brother Tarkiryan.
13. Earnil I. born 736 lived 200 years
+drowned 936.
He began the building of a great navy, and repaired the ancient
havens of Pelargir [added: and seized and fortified Umbar, 933].
He was lost with many ships and men in a great storm off
Umbar.
14. Kiryandil. born 820 lived 195 years f slain 1015
He continued to increase the fleets of Gondor; but he fell in a
battle with the Men of Harad [who contested the designs of
Gondor to occupy Umbar and there make a great fort and
haven. >] They contested the designs of Gondor to occupy the
coast-lands beyond R. Harnen; they therefore tried to take
Umbar, where Gondor maintained a great fort and haven.
15 Hyarmendakil I.
born 899 lived 250 years died 1149
At first called Kiryahir, he avenged his father, defeated the kings
of Harad, and made them acknowledge the overlordship of
Gondor, 1050. Gondor occupied all the land south of the
Mouths of Anduin up to [Umbar and the borders of Near
Harad; >] the River (Poros >) Harnen and the borders of Near
Harad; and also all the coast-lands as far as Umbar. / Umbar
became a great fortress and haven of fleets. After his victory
Kiryahir took the name of Hyarmendakil 'South-slayer'. He
reigned 134 years, the longest of all save Tarondor (twenty-
seventh king).
16. Atanatar II. born 977 lived 249 years died 1226.
Surnamed Alkarin, the Glorious. In his time, owing to the vigour
of the 'Ship-kings', the line from Falastur onwards, Gondor
reached the height of its power. This extended in direct rule as
far north as Celebrant and the south-eaves of Mirkwood, east to
the Sea of [Runaer >] Rhunaer, and south to Umbar, and west-
ward to the River Gwathlo or Greyflood. In addition many other
regions were tributary: the Men of Anduin Vale as far as its
sources, and the folk of Harad in the South. But Atanatar in fact
did nothing to increase this power, and lived mostly in splendour
and ease. The waning of Gondor began before he died, and the
watch on the borders was neglected.
17. Narmakil I. born 1049 lived 245 years died 1294.
The second childless king. He was succeeded by his younger
brother.
18. Kalmakil. born 1058 lived 246 years died 1304
19. Romendakil II. 1126 240 1366
20. Valakar 1194 238 1432
In his time there broke out the disastrous civil war called the
Kin-strife. After the death of Atanatar the Glorious the North-
men of Mirkwood and the Upper Anduin, who had increased
much in the peace brought by the power of Gondor, became
powerful. Though these people were ultimately related in speech
and blood to the Atani (and so to the Numenoreans), and were
usually friendly, they now became restless. Romendakil was
forced to withdraw his northern border east of Anduin to the
Emyn Muil. He there built the Gates of Argonath with images of
Isildur and Anarion beyond which no stranger was allowed to
come south without leave. But Romendakil being at this time
much troubled by assaults of Easterlings sought to attach the
Northmen more closely to his allegiance. He took many into his
service and gave them high rank. His son Valakar dwelt long
among them in the house of [added: Vidugavia] the King of
Rhovannion. Romendakil permitted him to wed the king's
daughter. The marriage of the heir to a woman of an alien people
and without any Numenorean blood had never occurred before,
and caused great displeasure. Before Valakar died there was
already open rebellion in the southern fiefs. Various claimants to
the crown appeared, descendants of Atanatar II. The most
favoured especially by the fleet, and ship-folk of the southern
shores, was the Captain of the Ships, Kastamir [great-grand-
son >] grandson of Kalmakil's second son Kalimehtar.
21(a). Eldakar. born 1255 deposed 1437.
When Valakar died his son, who had the alien name of
Vinitharya, took the name Eldakar, and succeeded. At first he
held Osgiliath, and Minas Anor, but he was driven out and
deposed by Kastamir, and fled to the north. In this war Osgiliath
suffered much damage, and the tower of the palantir was
destroyed and the palantir lost.
22. Kastamir. born 1259 seized throne 1437 +slain 1447.
After ten years Eldakar defeated Kastamir with the help of his
mother's kin. Kastamir was slain [added: by Eldakar in battle in
Lebennin, at Ethraid Erui], but his sons and many of his kin and
party fled to Umbar, and long held it as an independent realm at
war with Gondor.
21(b) Eldakar
regained the kingdom 1447 lived 235 years died 1490
After Eldakar's return the blood of the kingly house and kindred
became more mixed, for many Northmen settled in Gondor, and
became great in the land, and high officers in its armies. But the
friendship with the Northmen, which continued as part of the
policy of the kings, proved of great service in later wars.
23. Aldamir. born 1330 lived 210 years +slain 1540.
He was the second son and third child of Eldakar. His elder
brother Ornendil was slain in the wars of the Kin-strife (1446).
Aldamir fell in battle with the rebelling kings of Harad allied
with the rebels of Umbar.
24. Vinyarion. born 1391 lived 230 years died 1621.
He later (1551) took the name Hyarmendakil II, after a great
victory over Harad in vengeance for his father.
25. Minardil. born 1454 lived 180 years +slain 1634.
The rebels of Umbar had never ceased to make war on Gondor
since the death of Kastamir, attacking its ships and raiding its
coast at every opportunity. They had however become much
mixed in blood through admission of Men of Harad, and only
their chieftains, descendants of Kastamir, were of Numenorean
race. Learning through spies that Minardil was at Pelargir, sus-
pecting no peril since the crushing of Harad and Umbar by his
father, Angomaite and Sangahyanda, leaders of the Corsairs of
Umbar, great-grandsons of Kastamir, made a raid up Anduin,
slew the king, ravaged Pelargir and the coasts, and escaped with
great booty.
26. Telemnar. born 1516 lived 120 years died 1636.
Telemnar immediately began to fit out a fleet for the reduction of
Umbar. But a deadly plague or sickness, coming with dark winds
out of the East, fell on the land. Great numbers of the folk of
Gondor, especially those that dwelt in Osgiliath, and other cities
and towns, took sick and died. The White Tree of Minas Anor
withered and died. Telemnar and all his children perished. The
crown was taken by his nephew.
27. Tarondor. born 1577 lived 221 years died 1798.
He was the eldest son of Minastan, second son of Minardil. He
removed the king's house permanently to Minas Anor, and there
replanted a seedling of the White Tree in the citadel. During the
plague in Osgiliath those folk that survived fled from the city to
the western dales or into the woods of Ithilien, and few were
willing to return. Osgiliath became largely deserted and partly
ruinous. Tarondor had the longest reign of all the Kings of
Gondor (162 years), but was unable to do more than attempt to
re-establish life and order within his borders. Owing to the few-
ness of his people the watch on Mordor was neglected and the
fortresses guarding the passes became emptied.
28. Telumehtar. born 1632 lived 218 years died 1850.
He took the title Umbardakil after the storming and destruction
of the haven and stronghold of the Corsairs of Umbar (1810).
But this was later reoccupied and rebuilt in the troublous times
that later befell Gondor.
29. Narmakil II. born 1684 lived 172 years +slain 1856.
In his time it is said that the Ulairi or Ringwraiths re-entered
Mordor, owing to the ceasing of the vigilance, and there they
secretly prepared in the darkness for the return of their Dark
Lord. Men out of the East appeared of a new sort, stronger,
better armed, journeying in huge wains, and fighting in chariots.
Stirred up maybe by Sauron they made a great assault on
Gondor, and continued to be a great peril for very many years.
Narmakil was slain in battle with their host beyond Anduin,
north-east of the Morannon.
30. Kalimehtar. born 1736 lived 200 years died 1936.
He continued the War of the Wainriders, and in 1899 won a
great victory over them on Dagorlad, which checked their
attacks for some time. He built the White Tower in Minas Anor
to house the palantir.
31. Ondohir.
[> Ondonir) born 1787 lived 157 years +slain 1944.
War continued with the Wainriders. In 1940 Ondohir [>
Ondonir] gave the hand of his daughter Firiel (born 1896), his
third child, to Arvedui heir of Araphant, King of the North-
kingdom; but he was unable to send any help to the north
against the evil realm of Angmar, because of his own peril. In
1944 Ondohir [> Ondonir] and both his sons Faramir and
Artamir fell in battle against an alliance of the Wainriders and
the Haradrim. The king and his sons fell in battle in the north
and the enemy poured into Ithilien. But in the meantime Earnil
Captain of the southern army won a victory in South Ithilien,
destroyed the army of Harad, and hastening north succoured the
retreating remnants of the northern army, and drove the Wain-
riders off. In the great rout that followed most of the enemy were
driven into the Dead Marshes.
On the death of Ondohir [> Ondonir] and his sons Arvedui
of the North claimed the crown of Gondor as the 'direct de-
scendant of Elendil', and as husband of Firiel. The claim was
rejected by Gondor. At length Earnil the victorious Captain
received the crown (in 1945), since he was of the royal house.
32 Earnil II born 1883 lived 160 years died 2043
He was son of Siriondil, son of Kalimmakil, son of Narmakil II.
In his time the North-kingdom came to an end with the over-
throw and death of Arvedui, claimant to both crowns. He sent
[some help north by sea >] his son Earnur north with a fleet, and
so aided in the destruction of the realm of Angmar. But, though
not revealed until later, the Witch-king fled south and joined the
other Ringwraiths in Mordor, becoming their Lord. When they
were ready the Ulairi suddenly issued from Mordor over the pass
of Kirith Ungol. They took Minas Ithil, and were never again
expelled from it during that Age. It became a place of great fear,
and was renamed Minas Morgul. Few people were willing any
longer to dwell in Ithilien, but this was still held and garrisoned
by Gondor. At this time probably the palantir of Minas Ithil was
captured and so came to the hands of Sauron.
33. and last of the Third Age.
Earnur. born 1928 lived 122 years +slain 2050.
He renamed Minas Anor Minas Tirith, as the city on guard
against the evil of Minas MorguL On the death of his father the
Lord of the Ringwraiths challenged Earnur to single combat
to make good his claim to the throne. Mardil the Steward
restrained him.
The challenge was repeated with taunts in 2050, seven years
later, and against the counsel of Mardil Earnur accepted. He
rode with a small escort of knights to Minas Morgul, but neither
he nor his company were ever heard of again. It was thought that
the faithless enemy had merely decoyed him to the gates and
then trapped him and either slain him or kept him in torment as
a prisoner.
Since his death was not certain Mardil the Good Steward
ruled Gondor in his name for many years. In any case no male
descendants of the royal line, among those whose blood was
little mixed, could be found.
For a long time before Mardil's day the Stewardship had
usually been held by a member of his family (the Hurinionath,
descended from Hurin, Steward to King Minardil). It now
became hereditary like a kingship; but each new Steward took
office with the formula: 'to hold rule and rod in the King's name
and until the King's return'. Though this soon became a mere
formality and the Stewards exercised all the power of kings, it
was believed by many in Gondor that a king would return, and
the Stewards never sat on the ancient throne nor used the royal
standard and emblems. The banner of the Stewards was plain
white. The royal standard was sable with a silver tree in blossom
beneath seven stars.
34. Elessar. born 2931 lived 190 years died 3121.
or the Fourth Age 100.
After a lapse of 969 years Aragorn, son of Arathorn, 16th chief-
tain of the Dunedain of the North, and 41st heir of Elendil in the
direct line through Isildur, being also in the direct line a descend-
ant of Firiel daughter of Ondohir [> Ondonir] of Gondor,
claimed the crown of Gondor and of Arnor, after the defeat of
Sauron, the destruction of Mordor, and the dissolution of the
Ringwraiths. He was crowned in the name of Elessar at Minas
Tirith in 3019. A new era and calendar was then begun, begin-
ning with 25 March (old reckoning) as the first day. He restored
Gondor and repeopled it, but retained Minas Tirith as the chief
city. He wedded Arwen Undomiel, daughter of Elrond, brother
of Elros first King of Numenor, and so restored the majesty and
high lineage of the royal house, but their life-span was not
restored and continued to wane until it became as that of other
men.
The Third Age ended according to the reckoning of the Eldar in
3021 and the same year Elrond departed. In 3022 the Fourth
Age started and the Elder Days and their Twilight were over.
The son of Elessar and Arwen was Eldarion, first king of the
Fourth Age, whose realm was great and long-enduring, but this
roll does not contain the names of the Fourth Age.
Here follows the roll of the Stewards of Gondor
that ruled the realm and city between the going of Earnur
and the coming of Elessar.
The Ruling Stewards of Gondor.
The names of these rulers are here added; for though the
Hurinionath were not in the direct line of descent from Elendil,
they were ultimately of royal origin, and had in any case kept
their blood more pure than most other families in the later ages.
They were descended, father to son, from Hurin, Steward to
King Minardil, who had laboured greatly for the ordering of the
realm in the disastrous days of the plague, when King Telemnar
died within two years of the slaying of King Minardil by the
Corsairs. From that time on the kings usually chose their
steward from this family, though a son did not necessarily
succeed a father. But in fact it had descended from father to son
since Pelendur, Steward to King Ondohir, and after the ending
of the kings it became hereditary, though if a Steward left no
son, the office might pass in the female line, that is to his sister-
son, or to his father's sister-son.
The choice was made according to their worth among the
near kin by the Council of Gondor. But the Council had no
power of choice if there was a son living.
The Stewards belonged to a family of the ancient Elf-friends
who used (beside the Common Speech) the Noldorin tongue
after the fashion of Gondor.* Their official names (after Mardil)
were in that tongue and drawn mostly from the ancient legends
of the Noldor and their dealings with the Edain.
All the time of the Stewards was one of slow dwindling and
waning both of the power and numbers of the Men of Gondor,
and of the lore and skill of Numenor among them. Also the life-
span of those even of the purer blood steadily decreased. They
were never free from war or the threat of war with the evil that
dwelt in Minas Morgul and watched them. They counted it
glory and success to hold that threat at bay. Osgiliath became
a ruin, a city of shadows, often taken and re-taken in petty
battles. For a while, during the 300 years peace, after the
(* Since this had long ceased to be a 'cradle-tongue' in Gondor, but
was learned in early youth (by those claiming Numenorean descent)
from loremasters, and used by them as a mark of rank, it had changed
very little since the Downfall; and though the Men of Gondor altered
a little some of the sounds, they could still understand the Eldar and
be understood by them. In the later days, however, they saw them
seldom.)
formation of the White Council, Ithilien was reoccupied and a
hardy folk dwelt there, tending its fair woods and fields, but
after the days of Denethor I (2435 - 77) most of them fled west
again. But it is true that but for Minas Tirith the power of
Mordor would much sooner have grown great and would have
spread over Anduin into the westlands. After the days of Earnur
the White Tree waned and seldom flowered. It slowly aged and
withered and bore no fruit, so far as men knew.
Pelendur. born 1879 lived 119 years died 1998.
He was steward to King Ondohir and advised the rejection of the
claim of Arvedui, and supported the claim of Earnil who became
king in 1945. He remained steward under Earnil, and was suc-
ceeded by his son.
Vorondil. boin 1919 lived 110 years died 2029.
He was succeeded by his son. [Added: Vorondil was a great
hunter and he made a great horn out of the horn of the wild oxen
of Araw, which then still roamed near the Sea of Rhun.]
1. Mardil Voronwe ('steadfast').
born 1960 lived 120 years died 2080.
He became steward to King Earnil in his later days, and then
to King Earnur. After the disappearance of Earnur he ruled the
realm for thirty years from 2050, and is reckoned the first of
the line of Ruling Stewards of Gondor.
2. Eradan. born 1999 lived 117 years died 2116
3. Herion. 2037 111 2148
4. Belegorn. 2074 130 2204
5. Hurin I. 2124 120 2244
6. Turin I. 2165 113 2278
He was the third child of Hurin. He was wedded twice and had
several children (a thing already rare and remarkable among the
nobles of Gondor); but only the last, a child born in his old age,
was a son.
7. Hador. born 2245 lived 150 years died 2395.
The last recorded Man of Gondor to reach such an age. After
this time the life-span of those of Numenorean blood waned
more rapidly.
8. Barahir. born 2290 lived 122 years died 2412.
9. Dior. 2328 107 2435.
He was childless and was succeeded by the son of his sister Rian.
10. Denethor I. born 2375 lived 102 years died 2477.
Great troubles arose in his day. The Morgul-lords having bred in
secret a fell race of black Orcs in Mordor assail Ithilien and over-
run it. They capture Osgiliath and destroy its renowned bridge.
Boromir son of Denethor in 2475 defeated the host of Morgul
and recovered Ithilien for a while.
11. Boromir.
born 2410 lived [89 >] 79 years died [2499 >] 2489.
He was third child of Denethor. His life was shortened by the
poisoned wounds he received in the Morgul-war.
12. Cirion. born 2449 lived 118 years died 2567.
In his time there came a great assault from the North-east. Wild
men out of the East crossed Anduin north of the Emyn Muil and
joining with Orcs out of the Misty Mountains overran the realm
(now sparsely populated) north of the White Mountains, pour-
ing into the wold and plain of Calenardon. Eorl the Young out
of Eotheod brings great help of horsemen and the great victory
of the Field of Celebrant (2510) is won. Eorl's people settle in
Calenardon, which is after called Rohan, a free folk but in per-
petual alliance with the Stewards of Gondor. (According to some
Eorl was a descendant of the Northmen that were allied with the
royal house in the days of Eldakar.) [Added: Eorl was slain in
battle in the 'Wold of Rohan' (as it was later called), 2545.]
13. Hallas. born 2480 lived 125 years died 2605
14. Hurin II. 2515 113 2628
15. Belecthor I. 2545 110 2655
16. Orodreth. 2576 109 2685
17. Ecthelion I. 2600 98 2698.
He repaired and rebuilt the White Tower in Minas Tirith, which
was afterwards often called Ecthelion's Tower. He had no chil-
dren and was followed by Egalmoth, grandson of Morwen sister
of Orodreth.
18. Egalmoth. born 2626 lived 117 years died 2743.
In this time there was renewed war with the Orcs.
19. Beren. born 2655 lived 108 years died 2763
In his time [there was a renewed attack on Gondor by the
pirates of Umbar. o] there was a great attack on Gondor (2758)
by three fleets of the pirates of Umbar. All the coasts were in-
vaded. I Gondor received no help from Rohan, and could send
no help thither. Rohan was invaded from the North-east, and
also from the West (by rebelling Dunlendings). The Long Winter
2758-9. Rohan lies for five months under snow. [Added: Saru-
man comes to Orthanc.]
20. Beregond. born 2700 lived 111 years died 2811.
In his time the War of the Dwarves and Orcs in the Misty Moun-
tains occurred [(2766 - 9) >] (2793-9). Many Orcs flying south
are slain and they are prevented from establishing themselves in
the White Mountains.
21. Belecthor II. born 2752 lived 120 years died 2872.
Only child, late-born, of Beregond. The last of his line to pass
the age of 100 years. At his death the White Tree finally dies in
the citadel, but is left standing 'until the King come'. No seedling
can be found.
22. Thorondir. born 2782 lived 100 years died 2882
23. Turin II. 2815 99 2914.
In his time [folk finally fled >] many more folk removed west
over Anduin from Ithilien, which became wild and infested by
Mordor-orcs. But Gondor makes and keeps up secret strong-
holds there, especially in North Ithilien. The ancient refuge of
Henneth Annun is rebuilt and hidden. The isle of Cair Andros
in Anduin is fortified. The Men of Harad are stirred up by the
servants of Sauron to attack Gondor. In 2885 Turin fought a
battle with the Haradrim in South Ithilien and defeated them
with aid from Rohan; but the sons of King Folcwine of Rohan,
Folcred and Fastred, fell in this battle. Turin paid Folcwine a rich
weregild of gold.
24. Turgon. born 2855 lived 98 years died 2953.
In the last year of his rule Sauron declared himself again, and re-
entered Mordor, long prepared for him. Barad-dur rose again.
Mount Doom long dormant bursts into smoke and flame.
[Added: Saruman takes possession of Orthanc, and fortifies it.]
25. Ecthelion II. born 2886 lived 98 years died 2984.
He is visited by Mithrandir (Gandalf) to whom he is friendly.
Aragorn of the North serves as a soldier in his forces. He
suengthens Pelargir again, and refortifies Cair Andros.
26. Denethor II.
born 2930 lived 89 years +slew himself 3019.
He was first son and third child of Ecthelion and more learned
in lore than any Steward for many generations. He was very tall
and in appearance looked like an ancient Numenorean. He
wedded late (for his time) in 2976 Finduilas daughter of Prince
Adrahil of Dol Amroth, a noble house of southern Gondor of
Numenorean blood, reputed also to have Elven-blood from
ancient days: the Elven-folk of Amroth of Lorien dwelt in the
region of Dol Amroth before they sailed over sea. His elder son
Boromir (2978) was slain by orcs near Rauros in 3019. His
younger son Faramir (2983) became the last Ruling Steward.
His wife Finduilas died untimely in 2987.
In his time the peril of Gondor steadily grew, and he awaited
always the great assault of Sauron that he knew was preparing.
It is said that he dared to use the palantir of the White Tower,
which none since the kings had looked in, and so saw much of
the mind of Sauron (who had the Stone of Ithil), but was aged
prematurely by this combat, and fell into despair.
The attack began in the summer of 3018. The Ringwraiths
issued once more from Minas Morgul in visible form. The
sons of Denethor resisted them but were defeated by the Black
Captain, and retreated over Anduin; but they still held West
Osgiliath.
Boromir departed to Imladris soon after on a mission to seek
the counsel of Elrond. He was slain as he returned. Minas Tirith
was besieged in March 3019, and Denethor burned himself on a
pyre in the Tomb of the Stewards.
27. Faramir. born 2983 lived 120 years died 3103.
= Fourth Age 82.
He succeeded by right on the death of his father, but in the same
year surrendered rod and rule to the King Elessar, and so was
the last Ruling Steward. He retained the title of Steward, and
became Prince of the restored land of Ithilien, dwelling in the
Hills of Emyn Arnen beside Anduin. He wedded in 3020 Eowyn
sister of King Eomer of Rohan.
So ends the tale of
the Ruling
Stewards of Gondor.
The manuscript C of The Heirs of Elendil ends here, but clipped to it
is a genealogy of the line of Dol Amroth: for this see p. 220.
Commentary.
As I have explained (p. 188), the manuscript B is for the Northern Line
the earliest text, and the commentary to this part is largely a record of
significant differences from the text printed (C). Corrections to B are
not as a rule noticed if they merely bring it to the form in C (in sub-
stance: usually not in the precise expression), nor are additions to B as
first written necessarily noticed as such.
References to the historical accounts following the names and dates
of the kings and rulers are made simply by the name, with the page-
reference to the C text. A notable feature of The Heirs of Elendil is
the record of the birthdates of the rulers, which were excluded
from Appendix A; other dates are in all cases the same as those in
Appendix A unless the contrary is noted.
The preamble concerning dates in C (p. 191) is absent from B,
which begins with the genealogy. This differs from that in C in show-
ing Anarion as the elder son of Elendil, and in naming 'Valandil of
Arthedain': thus B belongs with the early texts of the Tale of Years, as
already noted (pp. 188 - 9).
Only Isildur's youngest son, Valandil, is named in The Lord of the
Rings. In the very late work The Disaster of the Gladden Fields the
three elder are named Elendur, Aratan, and Ciryon (Unfinished Tales
p. 271 and note 11); on one of the copies of the typescript D (p. 190)
my father pencilled a note remarking on this, and saying that the
names found in 'Gladdenfields' were to be accepted.
In the chronological outline that follows in B as in C, the birth-date
of Anarion is 3209 and of Isildur 3219; Meneldil was born in 3299,
and it was Kiryandil son of Isildur who was the last man to be born in
Numenor (3318). Arthedain appears for Arnor in 3320; the birth-
dates of Earnur and Veandur are 3349 and 3389; and Valandil was
born in Annuminas, not Imladris.
In both texts Isildur died in 3441 (which in the list of the Northern
kings that follows is made equivalent to Third Age 1), the same year
as the overthrow of Sauron (see pp. 170, 177).
Following the words 'The Second Age ends and the Third Begins' B
continues at once with the naming of the kings of the Northern Line
(without the name Isildurioni). The list of these kings up to the disin-
tegration of the North Kingdom was the same in B as in C with the
sole difference (apart from the different date of Isildur's birth, 3219)
that the tenth king Earendur is named Earendil in B: on this see p. 189.
Valandil (p. 192). In B there was a note here: 'Removed to Fornost
and Annuminas was deserted'; this was struck out, and 'Annuminas
became deserted' added to the note following King Earendil.
Earendur (p. 193). The note in B begins 'After Earendil the Northern
Kingdom of Arthedain disintegrated', and the north-western kingdom
ruled by Amlaith is referred to by the name of the city of its kings:
'Fornost still claimed the overlordship, but this was disputed.' The
other realms are thus described in B: 'Cardolan (where later were Bree
and the Barrowdowns) and Rhudaur north of the R. Bruinen (where
later were the Trollshaws).'
Mallor (p. 193). In B the corresponding note follows Beleg the
twelfth king: 'In his reign Sauron took shape again in Mirkwood and
evil things began again to multiply.'
Celebrindor (p. 193). The name of the fifteenth king in B as first
written was Celem...gil, perhaps Celemenegil; this was struck out and
replaced by Celebrindol, as in C before correction to Celebrindor.
Malvegil (p. 193). The note in B is, as generally, briefer but has all the
essentials of that in C; here it is said that 'Fornost is at war with the
lesser kingdoms, the chief dispute being about the palantir of Amon
Sul'. The conclusion of the note in C, concerning this, was rejected
when the disputed claim to Amon Sul was introduced much earlier, at
the disintegration of Arnor after the death of Earendur. - On the name
Ulairi see p. 153.
The kings from Argeleb I to Arvedui (pp. 194 - 5). An earlier form of
the page in B that begins with the last sentence of the note following
Malvegil, the taking of the prefix aran, ar(a) by the kings at Fornost,
is extant, and here the names of these kings are seen evolving. The
original names were as follows (it is curious that despite the words at
the head of the page the first three kings do not have the prefix Ar):
17. Celebrindol (> Argeleb I)
18. Beleg H (> Arveleg I)
19. Malvegil II (> Araphor)
20. Arveleg (> Argeleb II)
21. Arvegil
22. Argeleb (> Arveleg II)
23. Arvallen (> Araval)
24. Araphant
25. Arvedui
But the dates of these kings underwent no change. The original name
of the seventeenth king, Celebrindol, was given to the fifteenth, orig-
inally Celemenegil (?), as noted above.
Argeleb I (p. 194). On the rejected page of B the note following this
king states only: 'slain in battle 1356. Angmar is repulsed but turns
upon the lesser kingdoms.' The replacement page has: 'Slain in battle
with subkingdoms of Cardolan and Rhudaur'. Neither text refers to
the palantir of Amon Sul. On the mention in the altered text in C of
Argeleb's fortifying of the Weather Hills see p. 189.
Arveleg I (p. 194). The rejected page of B has no note here; in the
replacement page it reads:
Angmar taking advantage of war among the Numenoreans comes
down and overruns Cardolan and Rhudaur. These realms become
subject to the Sorcerer-king and full of evil things, especially
Cardolan. But Fornost in spite of death of King Arveleg holds out
with aid from Lindon and Imladrist.
An addition concerning the palantir of Amon Sul was made to this:
The tower of the palantir on Amon Sul is destroyed, but na one
knows what became of the Stone. Maybe it was taken by the Witch-
king.
This addition was probably made in revision of the original statement
in C that the palantir was broken.
Argeleb II (p. 194). In B there was no note here and so no mention of
the plague, but the following was added in: 'He gave "the Shire" to the
Hobbits.' This is stated in an addition to an early text of the Prologue
(p. 9): 'In the Year 1 ... the brothers Marco and Cavallo, having
obtained formal permission from the king Argeleb II in the waning city
of Fornost, crossed the wide brown river Baranduin.'
Araval (p. 195). The statement in B reads: 'With help of Lindon and
Imladrist Araval wins great victory over Angmar, and drives the evil
wights north. He reoccupies Cardolan.' In the rejected page of B this
victory is ascribed to the next king, Araphant, who 'drives back the
Sorcerer-king and in 1900 destroys Cardolan.' There is no reference
to the victory of Araval in the history of the North Kingdom in
Appendix A.
Araphant (p. 195). More briefly, B has here:
Angmar recovers, and makes war again. Araphant seeks alliance
with Gondor and weds his son Arvedui to daughter of King Ondo-
hir of Gondor; so that his descendants come also from the southern
line of Anarion. But Gondor is waning and fallen on evil days, and
sends little help.
The original note to Araphant has been given under Araval, but an
addition to this mentions the marriage of Araphant's son Arvedui to
Ondohir's daughter, and here she is named: Ilmare (see further pp.
215-16, Ondohir). The change of Ondohir to Ondonir in C was made
also at all occurrences of the name in the Southern Line, and also that
of the seventh king of Gondor, Ostohir, was altered to Ostonir. These
changed names appear in the late typescript D, where my father let
them stand; but Ostohir, Ondohir reappear in Appendix A. In the
Second Edition he changed them to Ostoher, Ondoher( and also the
original name of Hyarmendacil I, Ciryahir (Kiryahir), which was
altered to Ciryaher). In an isolated note on these changes he said that
Ondohir was a hybrid name: in pure Quenya it should be Ondoher
(Q. heru, her- 'lord'), and -hir seems to be due to the influence of
Sindarin hir 'lord', and also that of other names ending in -ir,
especially -mir, -vir.
Arvedui (p. 195). The statement in B here lacks very little that is told
in C, although as my father first wrote it there was no mention of
Arvedui's fate: his death is given as 'slain 1974'. In a subsequent addi-
tion the same is said of his flight by ship and drowning as in C, and the
loss of the palantiri in the shipwreck is mentioned, but they are not
identified: they are called simply 'the two that remain'. In this text that
of Amon Sul was lost when the tower was destroyed ('Maybe it was
taken by the Witch-king', p. 209, Arveleg I). So also in C the palantiri
taken by Arvedui are those of Annuminas and Emyn Beraid, for in that
text the Stone of Amon Sul was said to have been broken (p. 194,
Arveleg I). C was emended to say that it was saved and removed to
Fornost (ibid.): this was the final version of the history, with the Stones
lost in the sea becoming those of Annuminas and Amon Sul, while that
of Emyn Beraid, which had a special character, remained in the North
(see RK p. 322, footnote, and Unfinished Tales p. 413, note 16). But
the C text was not emended in the present passage.
Of the tale told in Appendix A of Arvedui's sojourn among the
Lossoth, the Snowmen of Forochel, there is here no trace.
The Chieftains of the Dunedain (p. 195). The rejected page of B
carries the names of the Chieftains, and some of these as first written
were corrected on the manuscript, thus:
27. Araha[n]til (sixth letter illegible) ) Arahail
28. Aranuil > Aranuir
31. Arallas > Araglas
33. Arandost > Aragost
35. Arangar > Arahad II
36. Arasuil > Arassuil
39. Arv[or]eg (fifth and sixth letters uncertain) > Arador.
The dates were also different from the final chronology, save for those
of Aranarth and Aragorn II, in both versions of B; they were corrected
on the replacement page of B to those of C. The original dates were:
Arahail 2011-2176 Aravorn 2490-2647
Aranuir 2083-2246 Arahad II 2555-2711
Aravir 2154-2316 Arassuil 2619-2775
Aragorn I 2224-2324 Arathorn I 2683-2838
Araglas 2292-2451 Argonui 2746-2901
Arahad I 2359-2517 Arador 2808-2912
Aragost 2425-2583 Arathorn II 2870-2933
These changes of date were carefully made, in several cases in more
than one stage; in the result the length of the lives of the Chieftains
remained the same, except in the cases of Aravir, Aragost, Arador, and
Arathorn II.
Aragorn I (p. 196). In the rejected page of B he was 'lost in wilder-
ness while hunting'; in the replacement page he was 'lost in the wilder-
ness; probably slain by orcs [> wolves].'
Arassuil (p. 196). The victory of the Hobbits in 2747 was the Battle
of Greenfields.
Arador (p. 196). Arador's death is referred to at the beginning of the
tale of Aragorn and Arwen in Appendix A, as also is that of Arathorn
II (RK pp. 337-8).
Aragorn II (p. 196). B has here: 'Became King Elessar of Gondor and
Arthedain, aided in the overthrow of Sauron with which Third Age
ended in 3019. He wedded Arwen Undomiel, daughter of Elrond. His
descendants became thus heirs of the Numenorean realms, and of
Luthien and the Elf-kingdoms of the West.' The statement in C that
'The Third Age ended with the departure of Elrond in 3022' was
presumably a mere slip, since the date of Aragorn's death is given
immediately above as 3121 = Fourth Age 100, which assumes the
beginning of that Age in 3022. Later in C, when Aragorn appears at
the end of the roll of the kings of the Southern Line (p. 202), the depar-
ture of Elrond is given as 3021, the Fourth Age is said to have begun
in 3022, and 3121 is again equated with Fourth Age 100.
The Southern Line of Gondor.
The earliest extant list of the rulers of Gondor is the manuscript A
briefly described on p. 188. This has precisely the same form as the
two later texts of The Heirs of Elendil, with the dates of birth and
death (and the manner of death) of each king, and the length of his life.
There is only one difference of name in A, that of the fourteenth king
(p. 197), who was first called Kiryahir but subsequently renamed
Kiryandil (at the same time Kiryahir entered as the original name of
Hyamendakil I). There are only two differences in the succession, the
first being in that following the sixteenth king Atanatar II (p. 198),
which in A as first written went:
16. Atanatar II 977 - 1226
17. Alkarin 1049-1294
18. Narmakil I.
It was evidently at this point that my father stopped, moved 'Alkarin'
to stand beside Atanatar II with the words 'also named', and changed
Narmakil I from 18 to 17, entering as his dates those previously given
to 'Alkarin'. The next king, Kalmakil, was then entered as 18. I have
no doubt whatever that this was a mere slip, Alkarin being an
honorific name; and this is significant, for it shows that my father was
copying from an existing text, or existing notes. There is no trace now
of anything of the sort, and it must be concluded that the written
origin of the history of the rulers of Gondor is lost.
The other difference in the succession occurs after the thirtieth king
Kalimehtar (p. 200), where A has:
31. Ostohir II 1787-1985, lived 198 years
32. Ondohir 1837 - 1944 (slain), lived 107 years.
Earnil II and Earnur the last king are numbered 33 and 34. The death
of Ostohir II is thus placed 41 years after that of his successor
Ondohir. How this peculiar anomaly arose can only be surmised: the
likeliest explanation is that there were variant and contradictory con-
ceptions in the text that my father was using, and that he failed to
observe it. It was not corrected in A, and indeed the same succession
survived into B, with Earnur numbered the thirty-fourth king. When
he did observe it he resolved it by simply striking out Ostohir II and
giving his birth-date of 1787 to Ondohir, so that he lived for 157 and
not 107 years.
A also differed from the final chronology in the dates of the kings
from Anarion to Anardil (see p. 197), which were:
Anarion S.A. 3209-3440
Meneldil S.A.3299 - T.A.139
Kemendur S.A.3389-T.A.228
Earendil T.A.40-316
Anardil T.A.132-407
The dates of these five kings remained in B as they were in A, but were
then corrected to those found in C; after correction the life-span of
each king remained the same as before, with the exception of Anarion,
since he became the younger son of Elendil while the date of his death
was fixed. All other dates in A were retained into the final chronology.
The notes in A were brief and scanty until Valakar the twentieth
king (and those to Romendakil I and Hyarmendakil I were subsequent
additions):
7. Ostohir I Rebuilt and enlarged Minas Anor.
8. Romendakil I At this time Easterlings assailed kingdom.
13. Earnil I Began rebuilding the neglected navy. Lost at sea in a
storm.
15. Hyarmendakil I Defeated Harad and made them subject.
16. Atanatar II In his day Gondor reached its widest extent
owing to the vigour of the 'line of Earnil'. But he loved life of
ease and began to neglect the guards in the East. Waning of
Gondor began.
There are also some notes on the nature of the succession: Falastur had
no son, and his successor Earnil I was the son of Falastur's brother
Tarkiryan; Narmakil I had no children, and his successor Kalmakil
was his brother.
It seems plain that a firm structure at least in outline had already
arisen: that my father had in his mind a clear picture of the chron-
ology, the major events, the triumphs and vicissitudes of the history of
Gondor, whether or not it was committed to writing now lost.
From Valakar the notes in the A text as written become more fre-
quent and some of them much fuller, a pattern still reflected in the
entries in the greatly expanded C text. Some of these entries are given
in the commentary on the Southern Line in C that now follows.
Ostohir (p. 197). In all three texts Ostohir is the first of that name,
but the figure I was struck out in C: see p. 212. On the change of the
name to Ostonir see p. 210, Araphant.
Romendakil 1 (p. 197). In Appendix A Romendakil is translated
'East-victor', but in texts B and C 'East-slayer'; so also in the case of
Hyarmendakil, translated 'South-slayer' in B and C.
Falastur (p. 197). This king's former name Tarannon first appears in
C, though the reason for Falastur is recorded in B.
Kiryandil (p. 197). B has only 'Continued to increase fleets, but fell
in a sea-battle against the Kings of Harad'. The alterations to C under
Earnil I and Kiryandil bring the history to its form in Appendix A,
where it was Earnil who captured Umbar.
Valakar (p. 198). As the first extant account of the Kin-strife in
Gondor I give here the entry in A, where the whole history of the civil
war is placed in the note following Valakar:
In 1432 broke out the Kin-strife. Valakar had wedded as wife a
daughter of the King of Rhovannion, not of Dunedain blood. The
succession of his son Eldakar was contested by other descendants of
Kalmakil and Romendakil II. In the end Eldakar was driven into
exile and Kastamir, great-grandson of Kalmakil's second son
Kalimehtar, became king. But Eldakar drove him out again, and
after that time the blood of the kingly house became more mixed,
for Eldakar had the assistance of the Northmen of the Upper
Anduin his mother's kin, and they were favoured by the kingly
house afterwards, and many of them served in the armies of Gondor
and became great in the land.
Thus nothing was told of the political and military circumstances that
led to the marriage of Valakar to the daughter of the (as yet unnamed)
King of Rhovannion. In B something is said of this:
Since the days of Atanatar II the Northmen of Mirkwood and upper
Anduin had been increasing greatly in numbers and power, and
in Romendakil's time hardly acknowledged the overlordship of
Gondor. Romendakil having enough to do with Easterlings sought
to attach the Northmen more closely to their allegiance, and
arranged that his son Valakar should wed the daughter of the King
of Rovannion (Wilderland).
B then follows A in placing the whole history of the Kin-strife in the
note following Valakar, and makes only the additional statements that
such a marriage was unheard of, and that Valakar's son bore before
his accession the alien name Vinthanarya. In both texts it is said that
Kastamir was slain by Eldakar in 1447, but there is no mention in
either of the flight to Umbar by his defeated adherents and the arising
there of an independent pirate realm (see below under Minardil).
Aldamir (p. 199). In A it is said that 'his elder son Ornendil was slain
with him in battle with rebels of Harad'; B is the same as C, making
Ornendil the brother of Aldamir who had been slain in the Kin-strife,
but without the reference to 'the rebels of Umbar' (see under
Minardil).
Vinyarion (p. 199). The victory of Vinyarion in Harad in vengeance
for his father, mentioned in almost the same words in all three texts, is
not referred to in the account in Appendix A, and thus the reason for
his taking the name Hyarmendakil II is not given; but the event is
recorded in the Tale of Years, Third Age 1551.
Minardil (p. 199). In A the story of the founding of the hostile lord-
ship of the Corsairs of Umbar by the followers of Kastamir does not
appear and had probably not yet arisen: this is suggested by the fact
that in B it first enters long after the event in the note on Minardil:
The sons of Kastamir and others of his kin, having fled from
Gondor in 1447, set up a small kingdom in Umbar, and there made
a fortified haven. They never ceased to make war upon Gondor,
attacking its ships and coasts when they had opportunity. But they
married women of the Harad and had in three generations lost most
of their Numenorean blood; but they did not forget their feud with
the house of Eldakar.
The entry in B then continues with the account (much fuller than that
in Appendix A) of the slaying of Minardil at Pelargir, which was
repeated almost exactly in C.
The names Angomaite and Sangahyanda were changed to Anga-
maite and Sangahyando in the Second Edition.
Telemnar, Tarondor, Telumehtar (p. 200). In B the text of these
entries closely approached those in C; but most of the entry concern-
ing Tarondor, including the account of the desertion of Osgiliath and
the removal of the king's house to Minas Anor, was a later addition.
Narmakil II (p. 200). The note in A read: 'Battle with the Ring-
wraiths who seized Mordor. Osgiliath ceases to be the chief seat of the
kings'. In B this was somewhat developed:
At this time the Ulairi (or Ringwraiths) who had seized Mordor long
before began to assail Ithilien. Narmakil was slain by the Sorcerer-
king. Osgiliath ceased to be the seat of the kings.
This was roughly rewritten to read:
In his time it is said that the Ulairi (or Ringwraiths) arose again and
re-entered Mordor secretly. There they prepared in the darkness for
the return of their Dark Lord. Men out of the East, a fierce people
riding in great wains, came against Gondor, doubtless stirred up by
Sauron and Ulairi. Narmakil slain in battle.
This was the first appearance of the Wainriders.
Kalimehtar (p. 200). The note in A recorded only that Kalimehtar
'built the White Tower of Minas Anor and removed his court thither'.
B repeated this, and continued: 'Minas Anor becomes called Minas
Tirith, since Minas Ithil is lost and becomes a stronghold of the Ulairi,
and is called Minas Morgul.' This was struck out immediately, and
the fall of Minas Ithil postponed to the time of King Ondohir; sub-
sequently the entry was replaced by the following:
Built the White Tower of Minas Anor. Continued war against the
Wainriders, and defeated them before the Morannon.
The building of the White Tower by Kalimehtar is not referred to in
Appendix A, but is recorded in the Tale of Years, Third Age 1900. -
For Ostohir II who followed Kalimehtar in A and (before correction)
in B see p. 212.
Ondohir (pp. 200-1). A has here a more substantial entry, though
very largely concerned with the claim of Arvedui:
His sons Faramir and Artamir were both slain in the war with
Mordor. Minas Ithil fell and became Minas Morgul. In 1940 his
daughter (third child), born 1896, wedded Arvedui (son of
Araphant) last king of the North. Arvedui in 1944 claimed the
Southern crown, but this was refused. There was a time without
a king and the steward Pelendur governed. The claim of Arvedui
lapsed with his death in battle in 1974, but though too weak ever to
press their claim the descendants of Arvedui and Firiel daughter of
Ondohir, chieftains of the Dunedain of the North, continued to
claim the Southern crown; though in fact it passed after an inter-
regnum to Earnil II, a descendant (great-grandson) of Narmakil II's
second son Kalimmakil.
The omission in the note of the death of Ondohir was a mere oversight
in rapid writing: he is marked as 'slain' in 1944. Ondohir's daughter
is here named Firiel, as in B and C; the name Ilmare in the rejected
page of B in the section on the Northern Line (p. 210, Araphant) can
then only be explained as a passing change of name. The fact that the
Northern kings Araphant and Arvedui are named in A (and the date
of Arvedui's death given) shows that work on the history of the North-
ern Line existed before the writing of B, the earliest extant text for that
part (see p. 188).
In B the entry for Ondohir, as first written, began thus:
War continued with the Ulairi. Minas Ithil fell and became a strong-
hold of the enemy, and was renamed Minas Morgul. Minas Anor
became Minas Tirith.
This followed the original entry in B under Narmakil II, in which the
assault of the Ulairi on Ithilien was recorded (before the entry into the
history of the Wainriders). The fall of Minas Ithil and the renaming
of the two cities was now moved on from its placing in the reign of
Kalimehtar (and thus returns to the text of A, given above).
The opening of B was subsequently struck out, apart from the first
sentence, which was corrected to 'War continued with the Wainriders',
as in C. The rest of the original entry in B records the fall of Ondohir
and his sons 'in battle in Ithilien' (which as written referred to battle
with the Ringwraiths, but which was subsequently extended to read 'in
battle in Ithilien against an alliance of the Wainriders and the Harad
that assailed eastern Gondor from north and south'), and then recounts
the claim of Arvedui, closely following A. The statements in A that
'there was a time without a king' when the Steward Pelendur governed,
and that the crown passed to Earnil after an 'interregnum', were
retained but then struck out (see below under Earnil II). There is thus
no mention in B of the great victory of Earnil in South Ithilien followed
by his rout of the Wainriders, which led to his accession as king.
On the correction of Ondohir to Ondonir see p. 210, Araphant.
Earnil II (p. 201). In A it is said only that he was 'son of Kiryandil
son of Siriondil son of Kalimmakil son of Narmakil II', and that he
came to the throne in 1960 (thus after an interregnum of sixteen
years). This was repeated without change in B, and allowed to stand,
although my father had rejected the references to an interregnum,
when Pelendur governed, in the entry for Ondohir. Kiryandil was later
removed, and Siriondil became the father of Earnil. In all three texts
Kalimmakil was the son of Narmakil II, but in Appendix A (RK
p. 330) the son of Arciryas the brother of Narmakil.
Nothing further is said of Earnil in B as originally written, but in an
addition the flight of the Sorcerer-king out of the North is recorded
(though without any mention of the great fleet from Gondor under
Earnil's son Earnur which in large part brought about the destruction
of Angmar), and the fall of Minas Ithil moves to its final place in the
history:
In his time the Sorcerer-king of Angmar, chief of the Ulairi, fled from
the North and came to Mordor, and built up a new power. Under
his leadership the Ulairi took Minas Ithil, and made it their city and
stronghold, from which they were never expelled. S. Ithilien aban-
doned by Gondor, but a garrison holds the bridges of Osgiliath.
Minas Ithil becomes called Minas Morgul, and Minas Anor is
renamed Minas Tirith.
In C, as in Appendix A (RK p. 332), the renaming of Minas Anor took
place in the time of Earnur. - A further, later addition in B notes: 'The
Nazgul seize the Ithil-stone'.
Earnur (p. 201). This final note in A reads:
The last king. He went to war with Minas Ithil and Mordor and
never returned; nor was his body ever recovered. Some said he was
carried off alive by the evil king. He left no children. No male
descendants of clear title (or nearly pure blood) of Elendil could be
discovered. Mardil the Steward, grandson of Pelendur, governed
nominally 'until the King's return', and this became an habitual
formula. There had been a tendency (but no rule) for the Steward-
ship to be hereditary or at least chosen from one family. It now
became hereditary like a kingship.
Here the A text of the Southern Line ends. In B this note was repeated
without change of substance, but continues after the words 'hereditary
like a kingship':
But the Stewards no longer took official names of Quenya form, and
their names were all of Noldorin origin, that tongue still being used
by the noble houses of Gondor.
After the time of Earnur the White Tree never [> seldom] again
bore fruit, and ever its blossom grew less as it slowly died [> aged].
It is clear that the story of the challenge to Earnur by the Lord of the
Ringwraiths had not emerged. Later, the opening of the passage in B
was rejected and the following substituted:
He accepted the challenge [added: to fight for the palantir of Ithil?]
of the Lord of the Ulairi and rode over the bridge of Osgiliath [> to
the gates of Morgul] to meet him in single combat, but was betrayed
and taken, and was never again seen by men.
The two challenges to Earnur, and the restraint on the king exercised
by Mardil the Steward, did not appear until the text C.
Elessar (p. 202). The text in B is very close to its form in C, but lacks
the reference to the continued waning of the life-span of the royal
house. After the words 'and so restored the majesty and high blood of
the royal house' B concludes:
Here ends the Red Book. But it was foretold that Eldarion the son
of Elessar should rule a great realm, and it should endure for a hun-
dred generations of men; and from him should come the kings of
many realms in after days.
I have said (p. 190) that 'it is generally impossible to say how much
of the matter that entered at each successive stage had newly arisen,
and how much was present but at first ... held in abeyance.' Nonethe-
less, from this (inevitably complex) account of the development of the
history of the kings of Gondor recorded in increasing detail through
the texts, new elements can be seen emerging and becoming estab-
lished, as the founding of the corsair-kingdom of Umbar, the invasions
of the Wainriders, or the sending of the fleet from Gondor to assail
Angmar.
The Stewards of Gondor.
The earliest text recording the names and dates of the Stewards of
Gondor is constituted by two pages attached to the manuscript A
of the Southern Line. These pages were obviously written on con-
tinuously from the preceding section, but the text becomes very rapid
and rough in its latter part and ends in a scrawl of confused dates.
For the C-text of the Stewards see pp. 202 ff. The B-text is headed:
'Appendix. The Stewards of Gondor', with a brief preamble:
These may be added, for though not in the direct line, the Hurin-
ionath, the family to which Pelendur and Mardil belonged, were of
Numenorean blood hardly less pure than that of the kings, and
undoubtedly had some share in the actual blood of Elendil and
Anarion.
To this was added later:
During all the days of the Stewards there was unceasing war
between Minas Morgul and Minas Anor. Osgiliath was often taken
and retaken. In North Ithilien a hardy folk still dwelt as borderers
and defenders, but slowly they dwindled and departed west over the
River.
The notes in B as originally written were few, and those mostly con-
cerned (as in A) with individual Stewards as their lives and life-spans
affected the nature of the succession. References to other events were
in nearly all cases subsequent additions.
Pelendur. B has here, almost exactly following A: 'Became Steward
1940; ruled the realm during the interregnum 1944-1960, when he
surrendered authority to Earnil II.' On this see Earnil II, p. 216. That
Pelendur did become briefly the ruler of Gondor is not stated in C (as
it is in Appendix A, RK p. 319), but that there was an interregnum for
a year is implied by the revised dating (Ondohir slain in 1944, Earnil's
accession in 1945).
Vorondil. There is no note on Vorondil in A and B. With the addition
in C cf. the chapter Minas Tirith, RK p. 27, where it is not said (though
no doubt implied) that Vorondil was the actual maker of the horn last
borne by Boromir: 'since Vorondil father of Mardil hunted the wild
kine of Araw in the far fields of Rhun' (on this passage see VIII.281
and note 14).
Mardil Voronwe. A has a note here, which was not repeated in B,
'After his time the names are usually Noldorin not Quenya. Few are
left who know Quenya.' Cf. Appendix A (RK p. 319): 'His successors
ceased to use High-elven names.'
Belegorn. In A the name of the fourth Ruling Steward was Bardhan,
later changed to Belgorn; Belegorn in B.
Turin I. The same note is present in all three texts.
Hador. In A the name of the seventh Ruling Steward was Cirion, and
Hador that of the twelfth; this was retained in B, but the names were
later reversed. A has simply 'lived to great age 150'; B is as C, but the
note ends 'the life-span of the nobles is waning steadily.'
Dior. In A and B the same is said as in C, but Dior's sister (Rian in C)
is not named.
Denethor I. The note in A reads: 'Great troubles arose. Enemy
destroyed Osgiliath. Boromir son (third child) of the Steward defeats
them, and for a time recovers Ithilien.' B repeated this, but the text was
altered to read: 'Enemy overran all Ithilien and destroyed the bridges
of Osgiliath.'
Boromir. A has: 'Death hastened by wounds got in the war'; B: 'His
life was shortened by wounds received from the poisoned weapons of
Morgul.'
Cirion. In neither A nor B was there a note following Cirion (first
written Hador), but the following was added in B: 'War with Orcs
and Easterlings. Battle of Celebrant' (with the date 2510 put in sub-
sequently), and also:
Sauron stirs up mischief, and there is a great attack on Gondor. Orcs
pour out of the Mountains and of Mirkwood and join with Easter-
lings. Hador [> Cirion] gets help from the North. Eorl the Young
wins the victory of the Field of Celebrant and is given Calenardon
or Rohan.
Since the mentions of the Field of Celebrant in the narrative of The
Lord of the Rings were all late additions (see e.g. IX.72, note 16) it
may be that the story was evolving at the time of the writing of The
Heirs of Elendil.
Ecthelion I. A's note here makes Egalmoth, successor of the childless
Ecthelion, the grandson of Morwen sister of Belecthor I. This intro-
duces a generation too many, and was obviously due to the mention
of Egalmoth under his predecessor Ecthelion - a testimony to the
rapidity with which my father sketched out the dates and relations of
the later Stewards in this earliest text. In B Morwen becomes the sis-
ter of Orodreth, Ecthelion's father.
Egalmoth. In B a note was added (repeated in C): Orc-wars break
out'. This is referred to in the Tale of Years in Appendix B: '2740
Orcs renew their invasions of Eriador.' A later pencilled note in B says
'Dwarf and Orc war in Misty Mountains' (see under Beregond
below).
Beren. There was no note in B, but these were added: 'Long winter
2758', and 'In his reign there is an attack on Gondor by [Pirates >]
Corsairs of Umbar [2758 >] 2757'.
Beregond. In A and B his name was Baragond, with the note that he
was the third child of Beren. A pencilled note in B repeats the notice
of the War of the Dwarves and the Orcs from the entry under Egal-
moth, with the date '2766-'.
The Stewards from Belecthor II to Ecthelion II. By this point A has
become no more than a working-out of dates; and the brief notes in B
can be collected together. That to Belecthor II is the same as in C but
without mention of the death of the White Tree; that to Turin II is
'Bilbo was born in the Shire during his rule'; and that to Turgon is
'Aragorn born in Eriador during his rule'. Very rough and hasty addi-
tions were made later in preparation for the much fuller notes in C.
The statement in C under Ecthelion II that 'Aragorn of the North
serves as a soldier in his forces' is the first mention of Aragorn's years
of service in disguise in Rohan and Gondor.
Denethor II. B has only a statement of dates and relationships,
including that of Denethor's marriage to Finduilas daughter of Adrahil
of Dol Amroth: this is seen in A (where the father of Finduilas is
named Agrahil) at the moment of its emergence.
Faramir. The note in B is the same in substance as that in C, but adds
that as the Prince of Ithilien he 'dwelt in a fair new house in the Hills
of Emyn Arnen, whose gardens devised by the Elf Legolas were
renowned.'
The Line of Dol Amroth.
Arising from the reference to Denethor's marriage to Finduilas, at the
foot of the last page of the B manuscript my father began working out
the genealogy of the descendants of Adrahil of Dol Amroth; and a
carefully made table beginning with Angelimir the twentieth prince
was attached by my father to the manuscript C of The Heirs of
Elendil. This I have redrawn on p. 221 (the Princes are marked with
crosses as in the original). Beneath the table is a note on the origins of
the house of Dol Amroth, telling that Galador the first lord was the
son of Imrazor the Numenorean, who dwelt in Belfalas, and Mith-
rellas one of the companions of Nimrodel. This note is printed in
Unfinished Tales, p. 248, with the unaccountable error of Angelimar
for Angelimir (an editorial mistake, since it occurs twice in the text
and again in the index).
The page obviously belongs with the writing of C to which it is
attached, since on the reverse are the first entries for the Southern Line
in exactly the same form as they appear in the text, but abandoned, as
it appears, simply because of an error in the writing out of the dates in
what was designed to be a fine manuscript.
Another briefer account of the origin of the Line of Dol Amroth is
found on a page attached by my father to the (as I believe, contem-
porary) manuscript T 4 of the Tale of Years, followed by a list of the
dates of the Princes, those from the second to the eighteenth without
names. This, however, is much later; for there is another form of the
same list written on the back of a college document from the earlier
part of 1954, and this is plainly the earlier of the two (see p. 223).
The House of Dol Amroth.
Amroth brother of Celeborn flies from northern Lorien when the
Balrog drives out the Dwarves about 1980 T.A.
Mithrellas, one of the companions of Nimrodel, is lost in the
woods of Belfalas, and is harboured by Imrazor the Numenorean
[added in margin: Imrazor 1950-2076], who takes her to wife
(according to the legends and traditions of Dol Amroth); though
after a few years she vanishes, whether to wander in the woods or
seek the havens. The son of the union of Mithrellas and Imrazor
received the elven-name of Galador; from him the lords of Dol
Amroth traced their descent. After the ending of the kings they
became virtually independent princes, ruling over Belfalas, but they
were at all times loyal to the Steward as representing the ancient
crown.
1.Galador 2004-2129 (125)
2 ... 2060-2203 (143)
3 ... 2120-2254 (134)
4 ... 2172-2299 (127)
5 ... 2225-2348 (123)
6 ... 2274-2400 (126)
7 ... 2324-2458 (134)
8 ... 2373-2498 (125)
9 ... 2418-2540 (122)
10 ... 2463-2582 (119)
11 ... 2505-2623 (118)
12 ... 2546-2660 (114)
13 ... 2588-2701 (113)
14 ... 2627-2733 (106)
15 ... 2671-+2746 (75) slain by Corsairs of Umbar
16 ... 2709-f2799 ([90]) slain in battle
17 ... 2746-2859 (113)
18 ... 2785-2899 (114)
19 Aglahad 2827-2932 (105)
20 Angelimir 2866-2977 (111)
21 Adrahil 2917-3010 (93)
22 Imrahil 2955-3054 (99)
23 Elphir 2987-(3087 =) F.A.57 (100)
24 Alphros 3017-(3115 =) F.A.95 (98)
In contrast to this carefully written page, the other form of this list
(that written on the back of the document of 1954) has a scrawled
note at its head, the same as that in the text just given but extending
only to the words 'harboured by Imrazor the Numenorean, who weds
her'; and the dates are written in pencil, with some corrections.
Imrazor is numbered 1, so that Angelimir is the twenty-first prince; but
this was corrected. The life-span of the sixteenth prince was given as
91 years instead of 90, and my father followed this in the second text;
and where the second text has 'slain in battle' the first has 'Battle with
Orcs'.
The statement here that Amroth was the brother of Celeborn
appears to be unique (for other accounts of him see The History of
Galadriel and Celeborn in Unfinished Tales: but all the material con-
cerning Amroth collected there comes from after, much of it long after,
the publication of The Lord of the Rings). On both forms of the
present text the words were struck out, and on the second my father
pencilled 'was a Sinda from Beleriand'. With the time of Amroth's
flight from Lorien cf. the entry for 1981 in Appendix B: 'The Dwarves
flee from Moria. Many of the Silvan Elves of Lorien flee south.
Amroth and Nimrodel are lost'; also Unfinished Tales pp. 240, 245.
No events are recorded elsewhere in the years 2746 and 2799 that
cast light on the deaths in battle of the fifteenth and sixteenth Princes
of Dol Amroth.
The dates of the deaths of Prince Imrahil and of Faramir Prince of
Ithilien in the genealogy redrawn on p. 221 (3054 = Fourth Age 34,
and 3103 = F.A.83) place the beginning of the Fourth Age in 3021;
similarly in the list of the princes given above the dates of the deaths
of Elphir and Alphros, 3087 and 3115, and equated with F.A.67 and
95. In text C of The Heirs of Elendil the Fourth Age began in 3022,
and in text B the Third Age ended in 3019 (see pp. 196, 211).
The Princes Aglahad, Angelimir, Elphir, and Alphros are only
recorded in these texts, as also are other members of the line of Dol
Amroth in the genealogical table, Ivriniel, Erchirion, and Amrothos.
Faramir's son Elboron likewise only appears in this genealogy. In him
an old name reappears: Elboron and Elbereth were the original names
of the young sons of Dior Thingol's Heir who were murdered by the
followers of Maidros (IV.307, V.142). Later the sons of Elrond were
named Elboron and Elbereth, before they became Elladan and Elrohir
(VIII.297, 301, 370).
The further development of Appendix A is postponed to Chapter
IX.
VIII.
THE TALE OF YEARS OF
THE THIRD AGE.
The earliest text of the Tale of Years of the Third Age is a brief manu-
script apparently closely associated with the very early form of that of
the Second Age which I have called T 2 (see pp. 168-70); and although
they are separate texts and not continuous it is convenient to refer to
this likewise as T 2.
Though subsequently covered with somewhat haphazard accre-
tions, for the most part obviously associated with work on the
chronology of the Realms in Exile, it is possible to extricate with fair
certainty the text of T 2 as originally set down, and I give it in this
form here.
Of the History of the Third Age
little is known.
0 If we reckon from the death of Isildur.
Years of Third Age.
1000- Sauron wakes again, and enters Mirkwood. Estab-
lishes a stronghold at Dol Dugul (1) and slowly grows.
c.1100. Deagol finds the One Ring and is slain by Smeagol.(2)
Smeagol becomes Gollum.
c.1105. Gollum enters eaves of Misty Mountains.
c.1300. The people of Smeagol grow and begin to multiply.
They cross the Misty Mountains and journey west-
ward. They become Hobbits.(3) Orcs begin to reappear.
c. 1500. Hobbits settle at Bree.
c. 1600. (S.R.1)(4) Marco and Cavallo cross the Baranduin
(Brandywine) and are given 'the Shire' to live in by the
king at Northworthy (5) (Fornost). 'Shire-reckoning'
begins.
c.1900. Last 'king at Northworthy'. The Dunedain or Rangers
(last of the Numenoreans in the North) wander in the
wild; but the heirs of the kings live at Imladris (Riven-
dell) with Elrond.
c. 2000. The line of the Kings of Gondor becomes extinct with
death of Earnur.(6) The Line of the Stewards begins with
Mardil the Good Steward.
c.2500. Elrond who had never before been wed, wedded Cele-
brian daughter of Galadriel of Lorien.(7) His children
were Elrohir and Elladan and a daughter Finduilas (8)
in whom the likeness of Luthien reappeared. These
children are of men's stature but Elven-blood.(9)
c. 2600. Celebrian is slain by Orcs on the road over the Moun-
tains to visit Galadriel.
c. 2620. Isengrim Took the First establishes the Took family in
the Shire.
c.2890. Bilbo born.
2910. Aragorn son of Arathorn heir of Isildur born.
2940. Bilbo goes on his adventures.
2950. Sauron re-enters Mordor.
3001. Bilbo's Farewell Party.
3018. Frodo sets out.
Whatever may have been the reasons for the selection of these par-
ticular events, it is striking that there are no entries referring to the
history of Arnor and Gondor except those to the last king in the North
and to the last king in the South (Earnur), with the beginning of the
line of Stewards; and the dates of these entries show that this text
preceded the earliest extant forms of The Heirs of Elendil.
The next version was the manuscript T 3 (see p. 172), which in the
part of it treating the Second Age, as I have said, was 'little more than
a copy of T 2, with a number of entries expanded'. This is not at all
the case, however, with the Third Age. It was here that my father intro-
duced a comprehensive and coherent chronology of the Age, and set
his course, in this work that he called 'the Tale of Years', in a direction
remarkably unlike its ultimate appearance in Appendix B to The Lord
of the Rings. That it was closely associated with The Heirs of Elendil
is very plain. The manuscript was covered with alterations, ex-
pansions and additions, and became a working draft for the major
text T 4 which I have no doubt soon followed it.
As will be seen subsequently, T 4 was and remained for a long time
the form of the Tale of Years that my father thought appropriate, and
was indeed proposed to the publishers in 1954. I shall here pass over
the text T 3, though with some reference to it in the notes at the end
of the chapter, and give that of T 4 in its entirety.
This is a very clear manuscript with a notable lack of hesitation or
second thoughts. That it was intended to be a final and publishable
text is shown also by the fact that, when my father came to the con-
clusion that the establishment of the White Council was placed four
hundred years too early, he rejected two pages and wrote two new
ones in such a way that they fitted precisely into the original text. I give
it here as it was written, say in the years 1949 - 50 (as I believe), but
with the text of the substituted pages, since it seems probable that they
were written before the manuscript was completed, or at any rate soon
after. It was a good deal altered later, chiefly with respect to certain
matters: the migrations of the Stoors; the machinations of Saruman;
and the movements of Gollum. I have not included any revisions in the
text, but give an account of them at the end of the chapter (p. 250).
The opening statement concerning the Four Ages, and the entries
for the Second Age, have been given on pp. 172-7.
The Third Age
These were the Fading Years. Of this Age in its beginnings little
is now known, save for the traditions of the realm of Gondor.
For a thousand years and more the Eldar in Middle-earth, pro-
tected by the Three Rings, were content and at peace, while
Sauron slept; but they attempted no great deeds, and made no
new things of wonder, living mostly in memory of the past. In
all this time the things of old were slowly fading, and new things
were stirring, though few observed the signs.
The Dwarves became ever more secretive, and hid themselves
in deep places, guarding their hoards from their chief enemies,
the dragons and the Orcs. One by one their ancient treasuries
were plundered, and they became a wandering and dwindling
people. In Moria the Dwarves of the race of Durin long held
out, but this people once numerous steadily waned, until their
vast mansions became dark and empty.
The might and lore and the life-span of the Numenoreans
(or Dunedain as they were called by the Elves) also waned as
the years passed and their blood became mingled with that
of lesser Men.(10) More swift was the waning in the North-
kingdom, for the lands of Eriador, as that region was now
called, became colder and less friendly to Men in that time.
There the Dunedain became ever less. After the days of Earen-
dur (11) of Arnor the North-kingdom became divided into petty
realms, and the Heirs of Isildur of the direct line ruled only over
Arthedain in the far North-west. In Gondor the power of the
kings of Anarion's line endured longer, and their sway extended
over many lands of Men; but there was little coming and going
between the realms except in times of need.
1. Ohtar Isildur's esquire escapes with two other men
only from the slaughter of the Gladden Fields.(12) He
brings the shards of Elendil's sword, Narsil, which
Isildur had saved, and delivers it to Valandil Isildur's son
in Imladris. Valandil was a child, fourth son of Isildur.
His brothers perished with their father.
10. Valandil Isildur's son becomes King of Arnor and dwells
at Annuminas.
420-30. Ostohir King of Gondor rebuilds and enlarges
Minas Anor.
490. First invasion of Gondor by Easterlings.
500. Tarostar defeats the Easterlings and takes the name of
Romendakil, East-slayer.
541. Romendakil slain in battle with a second invasion of
Easterlings, who are driven out by his son Turambar.
861. Death of Earendur last and tenth king of Arnor. The
North-kingdom becomes divided among Earendur's
sons. The direct line of the eldest son, Amlaith of
Fornost, rules the realm of Arthedain. Annuminas is
deserted. The other realms were Cardolan (where later
was Bree and the Barrowdowns) and Rhudaur, north of
the River Baranduin. From this time the official names
of the kings at Fornost were no longer given in High-
elven form, but in Noldorin. Amlaith and his descend-
ants maintained friendship with the Eldar, especially
with Cirdan at the Havens.(13)
c. 1000. About this time the Istari, that is the Wise Men or
wizards, appeared in the westlands of Middle-earth. It
was not known whence they came (unless to Cirdan and
Elrond). But afterwards, when it was revealed that the
shadow of Sauron had first begun to take new shape at
this same time, it was said by many that they came out
of the Far West, and were messengers sent to contest the
power of Sauron, if he should arise again, and to move
all good folk and kindly creatures to resist him.
The Wizards appeared nonetheless in the likeness of
Men, and resembled Men in most things, save that they
were never young and aged but slowly, and had many
powers of mind and hand. For long they journeyed far
and wide among Elves and Men and all speaking-folk,
and held converse also with beasts and birds. They did
not reveal their true names, but used those that the
peoples of Middle-earth gave to them, and they were
many. The chief of this order were the two whom the
Eldar called Mithrandir and Curunir, but Men in the
North named Gandalf and Saruman. Of them Mith-
randir was closest in counsel with the Eldar and with
Elrond; he wandered far in the North and West and
never made for himself any lasting abode. But Curunir
journeyed often far into the East, and when he returned
he dwelt at Orthanc in the Ring of Isengard.(14)
About this time also the Periannath, of whom there
are no earlier accounts among Elves or Men, are first
mentioned in ancient tales. These were a strange small
people, called by Men (15) Halflings, but by themselves
(later in the west of Eriador) Hobbits. They are thought
to have long dwelt in Greenwood the Great or near its
western eaves, and in the vale of the upper Anduin. But
at this time they began to move westward over the Misty
Mountains into Eriador. It is said that they moved from
their earlier dwellings because Men increased much at
that time; and because a shadow fell on Greenwood,
and it became darkened, and was called Mirkwood, for
an evil spirit stirred there.(16) The Harfoots were the first
clan of Hobbits to enter Eriador.(17)
c.1100. It becomes known to the Wise (being the chieftains of
the Eldar and the Istari) that an evil power had arisen
in Mirkwood and had established a stronghold on the
hill of Dol Guldur in the southern forest. But it was
still some time before they knew for certain that this was
the shadow of Sauron himself and that he was awake
again.
c.1150. The Fallohides, a clan of the Periannath, crossed into
Eriador and came down from the North along the River
Hoarwell. About the same time the Stoors, another clan,
came over the Redhorn Pass and moved south towards
Dunland.(18)
c.1200. Under Atanatar the Glorious Gondor reaches the
height of its power, and its sway extends from the
Greyflood in the West to the Sea of Rhunaer in the East,
and from the south-eaves of Mirkwood in the North to
the land of the Haradrim in the South. The Haradrim
acknowledge the overlordship of Gondor for many
years.
c.1300. The western Periannath, now for the most part
mingled together, move westward from the region of
Amon Sul (Weathertop), and begin to make small
settlements among the remnants of the peoples of the
old North-kingdom. Their chief settlement was on and
about the Hill of Bree.
c.1350. Evil things begin to multiply again. Orcs increase
rapidly and delve in the Misty Mountains, and attack
the Dwarves. The Ringwraiths stir once more. The chief
of these, the wielders of the Nine Rings, becomes the
Witch-king of the realm of Angmar in the North beyond
Arnor, and makes war on the remnants of the Dunedain.
1356. Argeleb king at Fornost is slain in battle with the realms
of Cardolan and Rhudaur, which resist his claim to
overlordship.
c.1400. About this time, owing to dissensions and to the
unfriendliness of the lands and clime of eastern Eriador,
some of the Stoors return to Wilderland and dwell
beside the R. Gladden that flows into Anduin. They
become a riverside people, fishers and users of small
boats. Others of the Stoors move north and west and
join with the Harfoots and Fallohides.
1409. The Witch-king of Angmar taking advantage of the civil
war among the Dunedain comes out of the North and
overwhelms the petty realms of Cardolan and Rhudaur
and destroys the remnants of the Numenoreans that
dwelt there. Cardolan is forsaken. The deserted mounds
of Cardolan become filled with deadly spirits; but in
Rhudaur for long there dwelt an evil people out of the
North, much given to sorcery. The Men of Bree and the
Periannath of the same region maintain their indepen-
dence.
In this year 1409 King Arveleg I of Fornost was slain
in battle by the Witch-king, but the Heirs of Isildur still
hold out at Fornost with aid from Lindon. Arveleg is
succeeded by Araphor.
In this war the Palantir of Amon Sul was destroyed.
Help did not come from the South-kingdom for their
peace also was troubled by dissensions. King Valakar
took to wife the daughter of an alien king of the North-
men of Anduin, with whom Gondor had sought alliance
and aid in their war with the Easterlings. No king or
heir to the throne of Gondor had before done such a
thing.
1432. War of the Kin-strife breaks out in Gondor. Valakar dies
and the succession of his son, half of alien blood, is con-
tested by other descendants of Atanatar the Glorious.
The war lasts till 1447. Kastamir who had driven out
Valakar's son Eldakar was ejected by Eldakar and slain.
The sons of Kastamir flee from Gondor and set up a
pirate fortress at Umbar, and remain at war with the
king.
1601. (S.R.1)(19) A host of Periannath migrates from Bree west-
ward, and crosses the R. Baranduin (Brandywine). The
land beyond, between the Baranduin and Emyn Beraid,
had been a demesne of the Kings of Arnor, where they
had both chases and rich farms; but they were now
untended and falling into wilderness. The king Argeleb
II therefore allowed the Periannath to settle there, for
they were good husbandmen.(20) They became his sub-
jects in name but were virtually independent and ruled
by their own chieftains. Their numbers were swelled by
Stoors that came up from southern Eriador and entered
the land from the south and dwelt mostly near to the
Baranduin. This land the Periannath or Halflings called
'The Shire'. Shire-reckoning begins with the crossing of
the Baranduin in this year.
1634. The Corsairs of Umbar slew King Minardil and ravaged
Pelargir. They were led by Angomaite and Sangahyanda
grandsons of Kastamir.(21)
1636. A great plague comes out of the East, and devastates
Gondor. King Telemnar and all his children died. The
White Tree of Isildur in Minas Anor withered and died.
The power of Gondor dwindles.
1640. King Tarondor removed the king's house to Minas Anor.
He planted there again a seedling of the White Tree.
Osgiliath becomes deserted owing to the fewness of
the people, and begins to fall into ruin. The watch on
Mordor is relaxed, and the fortresses at the passes
become empty.
The plague spreads north and west, and wide regions
of Eriador become desolate. But the virulence of the
plague decreases as it passes west and the Periannath in
the Shire suffer little loss.(22)
c.1700. Mordor being now left unguarded evil things enter in
again and take up their abode there secretly. Communi-
cation between the North and South kingdoms ceases
for a long while.
1850. Assault of the Wainriders out of the East upon Gondor.
War lasts for many years.
1900. Kalimehtar of Gondor builds the White Tower in Minas
Anor.
1940. Messengers pass between the two kingdoms, since both
are in peril: the South from the Wainriders of the East,
and the North from renewed attacks of Angmar.
Arvedui heir of Araphant of Arthedain weds Firiel, the
daughter of King Ondohir of Gondor.
1944. Ondohir with both his sons, Faramir and Artamir, slain
in battle against a great alliance of the Wainriders and
the Men of Harad. Arvedui of the North claims the
southern crown, both on his wife's behalf and on his
own as representing 'the elder line of Isildur'. The claim
is refused by Gondor and lapses with the death of
Arvedui; but all his descendants, though too weak to
press their claim, continue to maintain that they are also
by rights kings of Gondor, being descended both from
Isildur and Anarion (through Firiel).
1960. Pelendur the king's steward for a time ruled Gondor,
but after a while Earnil, descendant of a previous king,
receives the crown.(23)
1974. End of the North-kingdom. The Witch-king destroys
Fornost, lays the land waste, and scatters the remnants
of the Dunedain. Arvedui flies north taking the Palantiri
(the two that remain). He attempts to escape by ship to
Gondor from Forochel, but is lost at sea, and the Stones
disappear. His sons take refuge with Cirdan.(24)
1975. Cirdan of Lune and Elrond, with belated help sent by
sea from King Earnil, defeat Angmar. The Witch-king is
overthrown and his realm destroyed. He flies south and
comes at last to Mordor.
1976. Aranarth son of Arvedui takes refuge with Elrond at
Imladris. He abandons the title of 'king', since he now
has no people, but the chieftains of the Dunedain
descended from him continue to bear names with the
royal prefix Ar, Ara. The Periannath sent archers to the
Battle of Fornost, but after the end of the kingdom they
claim the Shire as their own. They elect a Thain to take
the place of the king.(25) According to their tradition
the first independent Shire-thain was one Bucca of the
Marish, from whom later the Oldbuck family claimed
descent. The beginning of his office dated from S.R.379.
1980-2000. The Witch-king gathers the other eight Ring-
wraiths to him and they issue from Mordor, and folk flee
from Ithilien in terror. The Ulairi captured Minas Ithil
and made it their stronghold, from which they were not
again expelled while the Third Age lasted. The Palantir
of Minas Ithil is captured. Minas Ithil is re-named
Minas Morgul (Tower of Sorcery), and Minas Anor is
called Minas Tirith (the Tower of Guard).
About this time also other evil things were roused. A
terror of the Elder Days, a Balrog of Thangorodrim,
appeared in Moria. Some say that the Dwarves delving
too deep in their search for mithril or true-silver dis-
turbed this evil creature from its sleep far under the
world. The remnants of Durin's folk are slain by the Bal-
rog or driven out of Moria. Many of them wandered
into the far North, as far as the Grey Mountains or the
Iron Hills.
c.2000. Curunir (Saruman), returning out of the East, takes up
his abode in the Tower of Orthanc in the Ring of Isen-
gard.(26) This had been an ancient stronghold of Gondor,
guarding their north-west frontier, but the northern
parts of the realm were now largely empty and King
Earnil was glad to have the aid of Curunir against the
Ringwraiths, and gave Isengard to him for his own.
About this time it is thought that Deagol the Stoor
found the Ring in Anduin near the Gladden Fields where
Isildur was slain as he swam. Deagol was murdered by
his friend Smeagol, who took the Ring.
c.2010? Smeagol, now called Gollum, is cast out by his own
people, and hides in the Misty Mountains. He vanishes
out of all knowledge taking the Ring with him.(27)
2043. Death of King Earnil. His son Earnur (the Last King of
Gondor in that Age) comes to the throne. The Lord of
the Ringwraiths challenged him to battle.
2050. Against the counsel of Mardil his Steward King Earnur
accepts the renewed challenge of the Lord of Morgul to
single combat. He rides to the gates of Minas Morgul,
but he was betrayed and taken and never again seen by
mortal men. Earnur left no children. No male descend-
ants (of clear title or nearly pure blood) of Anarion
could be discovered. Mardil the good Steward governed
the realm, nominally 'until the King's return'. For a long
time previously the stewardship had usually been held
by a member of the same family (one of nearly pure
Numenorean descent). It now became hereditary in that
family like a kingship. But each Steward took office with
the formula 'to hold the rule and rod until the King's
return'; and they did not take official names of Quenya
or High-elven form. Their names were mostly of
Noldorin kind, that tongue being still used by those
descended from the Elf-friends of Numenor.
After the disappearance of Earnur and the ending of
the kings the White Tree seldom again bore fruit, and
each year its blossom grew less as it slowly aged.
2060. The fear of the Ringwraiths, or Ulairi, spreads far and
wide. The Elves deem that the Power in Dol Guldur is
one of these; but in the hearts of Elrond and Gandalf the
fear grows that the darkness in Mirkwood should prove
to be the shadow of Sauron himself awakening.(28)
2063. Gandalf goes alone to Dol Guldur in secret, to discover
the truth concerning the Sorcerer. But the Sorcerer is
aware of him; and being not yet grown to great power,
he fears the eyes of Gandalf, and the strength of the
Wise, and he deserts Dol Guldur and hides in the East
again for a while.
Here begins a time that is called the Watchful Peace.
For there was a long quiet, but no certainty. During that
time the Ringwraiths never again appeared in visible
shape beyond the walls of Minas Morgul; but the Wise
were in doubt what should yet come to pass, and
Gandalf made great journeys to discover the plans
and devices of their enemies.
2300. Elrond, who had remained unwed through all his
long years, now took to wife Celebrian, daughter of
Galadriel and Celeborn of Lorien. His children were
the twin brethren, Elladan and Elrohir, and Arwen
Undomiel, the fairest of all the maidens of the Third
Age, in whom the likeness of Luthien her foremother
returned to Middle-earth. These children were three
parts of Elven-race, but the doom spoken at their birth
was that they should live even as the Elves so long as
their father remained in Middle-earth; but if he departed
they should have then the choice either to pass over the
Sea with him, or to become mortal, if they remained
behind.
2340. Isumbras I, head of the Took family in the Shire,
becomes thirteenth Thain, the first of the Took line.(29)
After his day the office became hereditary in the family
of the Tooks of the Great Smials. About this time the
Oldbucks occupied the Buckland, east of the River
Brandywine and on the edge of the Old Forest.
2349. Birth of Elladan and Elrohir, sons of Elrond, in
Imladris.(30)
2349. Birth of Arwen Undomiel.
2460. After a space of nearly four hundred years the Watchful
Peace ends, and the powers of evil move again. The
Sorcerer returns to Dol Guldur with increased strength,
and gathers all evil things under his rule.
2463. The White Council is formed to unite and direct the
forces of the West, in resistance to the shadow. Curunir
(or Saruman the White) is chosen to be the head of the
Council, since he has studied all the arts and ways of
Sauron and his servants most deeply. Galadriel of Lorien
wishes Gandalf to be made chief, but he refuses. Saru-
man begins his study of the Rings of Power and their
uses and history.
2475. The attack upon Gondor is begun again with new
vigour, in the days of Denethor I, son of Dior,(31) the tenth
Steward. His son Boromir defeats the enemy before East
Osgiliath, but Osgiliath is finally ruined in this war, and
the ancient and marvellous stone-bridge is broken. The
Men of Gondor still maintain their hold upon Ithilien,
but little by little its people desert it and pass west over
Anduin to the valleys of the White Mountains.
2480. onwards Orcs again multiply in secret and occupy many
deep places (especially those anciently made by the
Dwarves) in the Misty Mountains. They do this so
stealthily that none are aware of it, until they have great
forces hidden and are ready to bar all the passes from
Eriador into Anduin's vales, according to the plan of
their master in Dol Guldur. Orcs and Trolls occupy parts
of the now empty Mines of Moria.
2509. Celebrian, wife of Elrond, journeys to Lorien to visit
Galadriel, her mother; but she is taken by Orcs in the
passes of the mountains. She is rescued by Elrond and
his sons, but after fear and torment she is no longer
willing to remain in Middle-earth, and she departs to the
Grey Havens and sails over Sea.(32)
2510. A great host of Orcs, with Easterlings as allies, assail the
northern borders of Gondor, and occupy a great part
of Calenardon. Gondor sends for help. Eorl the Young
leads his people, the Eotheod or Rohirrim, out of the
North from the sources of Anduin, and rides to the help
of Cirion, Steward of Gondor. With his aid the great
victory of the Field of Celebrant is won. Elladan and
Elrohir rode also in that battle. From that time forth the
brethren never cease from war with the Orcs because
of Celebrian. Eorl and his people are given the plains of
Calenardon 'to dwell in, and that land is now called
Rochann (Rohan). There the Rohirrim live as free men
under their own kings, but in perpetual alliance with
Minas Tirith.
2569. The Golden Hall of Meduseld is built by Brego son of
Eorl.
2570. Baldor son of Brego takes a rash vow to enter the For-
bidden Door in Dunharrow, and is never seen again.
2590. Thror the Dwarf (of Durin's race) founds the realm of
Erebor (the Lonely Mountain), and becomes 'King
under the Mountain'.(33) He lives in friendship with the
Men of Dale, who are nearly akin to the Rohirrim.
2620. Isengrim II, tenth Thain of the Took-line, born in the
Shire.
2698. Ecthelion I, Steward of Gondor, repairs and rebuilds the
White Tower of Minas Tirith, afterwards often called
the Tower of Ecthelion.(34)
2740- Wars with the Orcs break out again.
2747. Orcs passing far to the north raid down into Eriador. A
large force invades the Shire. Bandobras Took, second
son of Isumbras III, defeats them at the Battle of the
Greenfields in the Northfarthing and slays the Orc-chief
Golfimbul. This was the last battle in which Hobbits
(Periannath) were engaged until the end of the Third
Age.
2757. Rohan is overrun by Orcs and Easterlings. At the same
time Gondor is attacked by the Corsairs of Umbar.
2758-9. The Long Winter. Helm of Rohan takes refuge from
his enemies in Helm's Deep in the White Mountains.
2763. New line of kings in Rohan is begun with Frealaf
Hildeson (sister-son of Helm). The second row of King's
Mounds is begun.
2765. Smaug the Dragon descends on Erebor and destroys the
realm of Thror the Dwarf, and lays waste the town and
lordship of Dale. Thror and his son Thrain escape with
a few only of their people.
2766. Thror the Dwarf, descendant of Durin, being now
homeless and robbed of his treasure, ventures into
Moria, but is slain by an Orc in the dark. Thrain and
Thorin escape. In vengeance for Thror and in hope of re-
establishing a kingdom the scattered Dwarves of Durin's
race gather together out of the North and make war on
the Orcs of the Misty Mountains. The War of the
Dwarves and Orcs was long and terrible and fought
largely in the dark in deep places.
2769. The War of Orcs and Dwarves comes to an end in a
great battle before the East-gate of Moria: the Battle of
the Dimrill Dale (Nanduhirion). The Orcs were almost
annihilated, and Moria is once more emptied, but the
Dwarves also lost very heavily and were too few at the
end to reoccupy Moria or face the hidden terror. Dain
returns to the Iron Hills; but Thrain and Thorin become
wanderers.(35)
2790. Birth of Gerontius Took: later the fourteenth Thain,(36)
and known as 'the Old Took' because of his great age
(he lived to be 130 years old).
2850. Gandalf visits Dol Guldur again to discover the pur-
poses of the Sorcerer. He finds there Thrain the Dwarf
son of Thror and receives from him the secret key of
Erebor. Thrain had come thither seeking for one of the
Seven Rings,. but he dies in Dol Guldur.(37) Gandalf dis-
covers beyond doubt that the Sorcerer is none other
than Sauron himself, and that he is gathering again all
the Rings of Power, and seeking to learn the fate of the
One, and the dwelling of Isildur's Heirs.
2851. Gandalf urges the White Council to assail Dol Guldur,
but he is overruled by Saruman. For Saruman has begun
to lust for power and desires himself to discover the One
Ring. He thinks that it will come to light again, seeking
its Master, if Sauron is let be for a while. He does not
reveal his thought to the Council, but feigns that his
studies have led him to believe that the Ring has been
rolled down Anduin and into the deeps of the Sea. But
Saruman himself keeps a watch upon Anduin and the
Gladden Fields and he fortifies Isengard.
2872. Belecthor II, twenty-first Steward of Gondor, dies.(38) The
White Tree dies in the court of Minas Tirith. No seedling
can be found. The dead tree is left standing in the court
under the White Tower.
c.2880. Ithilien becomes desolate and untilled and the remnant
of its people remove west over Anduin to Lossarnach
and Lebennin. But the Men of Minas Tirith still hold
Ithilien as a border country and patrol it; they keep
forces in the ruins of Osgiliath and in secret places in
Ithilien.(39)
2885. In the days of Turin II, twenty-third Steward, the
Haradrim attack Gondor and ravage South Ithilien.
The Rohirrim send help. Folcred and Fastred sons of
King Folcwine of Rohan fall in battle in the service of
Gondor.
2891. Bilbo born in the Shire (his mother was a daughter of the
Old Took).
2911. The Fell Winter. White Wolves invade the Shire over the
frozen Brandywine River. About this time Saruman
discovers that Sauron's servants are also searching the
Great River near the Gladden Fields. He knows then
that Sauron has learned the manner of Isildur's end
(maybe from Orcs), and he is afraid. He withdraws to
Isengard and fortifies it, but he says nothing to the
Council.
2920. Death of Gerontius Took at age of 130.
2929. Arathorn, son of Arador chieftain of the Dunedain,
weds Gilrain daughter of Dirhoel [> Dirhael].
2930. Arador slain by Trolls.
2931. Aragorn son of Arathorn born.
2933. Arathorn II chief of the Dunedain slain by Orcs when
riding with Elladan and Elrohir. His infant son Aragorn
is fostered by Elrond. Elrond keeps the heirlooms of his
father, but his ancestry is kept secret, since the Wise
know that Sauron is seeking for the Heir of Isildur.
2940. Thorin Oakenshield the Dwarf, son of Thrain, son of
Thror of Erebor visits Bilbo in the Shire in the company
of Gandalf. Bilbo sets out for Dale with Gandalf and the
Dwarves. Bilbo meets Smeagol-Gollum and becomes
possessed of the Ring; but it is not guessed what Ring
this is.
Meeting of the White Council. Saruman, since he now
wishes to prevent the Sorcerer from searching the River,
agrees to an attack on Dol Guldur. The Sorcerer is
driven out of Mirkwood. The Forest for a time becomes
wholesome again. But the Sorcerer flies east, and returns
in secret.
Battle of the Five Armies fought in Dale. Thranduil of
Mirkwood, the Men of Esgaroth; and the Dwarves,
with the help of the Eagles of the Misty Mountains,
defeat a great host of Orcs. Bard of Esgaroth slays
Smaug the Dragon. Thorin Oakenshield dies of wounds.
Dain of the Iron Hills re-enters Erebor and becomes
'King under the Mountain'.
2941. Bilbo returns to the Shire with a share of the treasure of
Smaug, and the Ring.
2948. Theoden son of Thengel king of the Rohirrim is born in
Rohan.
2953. Aragorn returns from errantry in the company of
Elladan and Elrohir. Elrond reveals to him his ancestry
and destiny and delivers to him the Shards of Narsil, the
Sword of Elendil. Elrond foretells that in his time either
the last remnant of Numenor shall pass away, or the
kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor shall be united and
renewed. He bids Aragorn prepare for a hard life of war
and wandering.
Arwen Undomiel had now long dwelt with Galadriel
in Lorien, but she desired to see her father again, and her
brethren, Elladan and Elrohir, brought her to Imladris.
On the day in which his ancestry was revealed to him
Aragorn met her at unawares walking under the trees in
Rivendell, and so began to love her. Elrond is grieved,
for he foresees the choice that will lie before her; and
says that at least Aragorn must wait until he has fulfilled
his task. He reveals that as one of the pure blood of
Numenor, born to a high purpose, Aragorn will have a
long life-span. Aragorn says farewell to Rivendell and
goes out into the world.
At this time Sauron, having gathered fresh power,
declares himself and his true name again, and he
re-enters Mordor which the Ringwraiths have prepared
for him, and rebuilds Barad-dur. This had never been
wholly destroyed, and its foundations were unmoved;
for they were made by the Power of the One Ring. But
Mithrandir (Gandalf) journeys far and wide to counter
the plans of Sauron and prepare Elves and Men for war
against the Lord of Barad-dur.
2954. Orodruin (Mount Doom), long dormant, bursts into
smoke and flame again, and fear falls on Minas Tirith.
2956. Aragorn meets Gandalf, and their great friendship
begins. Aragorn undertakes great journeys, even far into
the East and deep into the South, exploring the purposes
of Sauron and all his movements. As an unknown
warrior he fights in the service of Gondor and of Rohan.
Because of his high race, the noblest among mortal men,
his fostering by Elrond, and his learning from Mith-
randir, and his many deeds and journeys he becomes the
most hardy of Men, both Elven-wise and skilled in craft
and lore.
2980. Aragorn returning on a time to Rivendell from perils on
the borders of Mordor passes through Lorien, and there
again meets Arwen Undomiel. He is now a mighty man
and she returns his love. They plight their troth on the
hill of Cerin Amroth in Lorien. Theoden becomes King
of Rohan.
2984. Denethor II becomes the twenty-sixth Steward of
Gondor on the death of his father Ecthelion II. He
married (late) Finduilas daughter of Adrahil, Prince of
Dol Amroth. His elder son Boromir was born in 2978.
His younger son Faramir was born in 2983. His wife
Finduilas died untimely in 2987.
2989. In the spring of this year Balin the Dwarf with Oin and
Ori and other folk of Erebor went south and entered
Moria.
2993. Eomer Eomundsson born in Rohan. His mother was
Theodwyn youngest sister of Theoden.
2996. Eowyn sister of Eomer born.
c.3000. onwards The Shadow of Mordor creeps over the
lands, and the hearts of all the folk in the Westlands are
darkened. About this time it is thought that Saruman
dared to use the Palantir of Orthanc, but was ensnared
thus by Sauron who had possession of the Stone of
Minas Ithil (captured long before by the Ulairi). Saru-
man becomes a full traitor to the Council and his
friends; but still schemes to acquire power for himself,
and searches all the more eagerly for the One Ring. His
thought turns towards Bilbo and the Shire, and he spies
on that land.
3001. Bilbo gives a farewell feast and banquet in Hobbiton
and vanishes from the Shire. He goes, after some jour-
neying and a visit to Erebor, back in secret to Rivendell,
and there is given a home by Elrond. Gandalf at last also
suspects the nature of the Ring of Gollum, which Bilbo
has handed on to his kinsman and heir, Frodo.
3002. Gandalf begins to explore the history of Bilbo's Ring,
and with the aid of Aragorn searches for news of
Gollum.
3004. Gandalf visits the Shire again, and continues to do so at
intervals, to observe Frodo, for some years.
3009. Last visit of Gandalf to Frodo before the end. The
hunt for Gollum begins. Aragorn goes to the confines of
Mordor.
3016. Elrond sends for Arwen and she returns to Rivendell;
for the Misty Mountains and all lands east of them are
becoming full of peril and threat of war.
3018. Gandalf visits Frodo and reveals the true nature of the
Ring that he possesses. Frodo decides to fly from the
Shire to Rivendell, but will wait till the autumn, or until
Gandalf returns. Saruman the traitor decoys Gandalf
and takes him prisoner in Isengard (shortly after mid-
summer). The Ringwraiths appear again. At midsum-
mer Sauron makes war on Gondor. The Witch-king
appears again in person as the Black Captain of the
hosts of Mordor. The sons of Denethor hold off the
attack. Words in a dream bid Denethor to seek for coun-
sel in Imladris where Isildur's Bane shall be revealed and
strength greater than that of Morgul shall be found.
Boromir sets out for Imladris from Minas Tirith.
Gandalf is aware of the coming of the Ringwraiths,
but being imprisoned in Orthanc cannot send warning
or help to Frodo.
Frodo leaves the Shire in autumn, but barely escapes
the Ringwraiths that in the shape of Black Riders have
come north to hunt for the Ring. Assisted by Aragorn
he and his companions reach Rivendell at the end of
October. At the same time Boromir arrives there, and
also messengers from Erebor (Gloin and his son Gimli)
and from Thranduil of Mirkwood (his son Legolas).
Gandalf escapes from Isengard and reaches Rivendell.
A great council is held in the House of Elrond. It is
resolved to attempt the destruction of the Ring by send-
ing it to the fire of Orodruin in Sauron's despite. Frodo
the Halfling accepts the perilous office of Ringbearer.
At the end of the year the Company of the Ring ('The
Nine Walkers') leave Rivendell.
3019. The War of the Ring begins, between Sauron and his
creatures, and their allies in the East and South (among
all Men that hate the name of Gondor), and the peoples
of the Westlands. Saruman plays a treacherous part and
attacks Rohan. Theodred son of Theoden is slain in war
with Saruman. Boromir son of Denethor is slain by Orcs
near the Falls of Rauros. Minas Tirith is besieged by
great forces led by the Black Captain, and is partly
burnt. Denethor slays himself in despair. The Rohirrim
by a great ride break the siege, but Theoden is slain
by the Witch-king. The Battle of the Pelennor Fields
followed, of which the full tale is told elsewhere. The
greatest deed of that day was the deed of Eowyn
Eomund's daughter. She for love of the King rode in dis-
guise with the Rohirrim and was with him when he fell.
By her hand the Black Captain, the Lord of the Ring-
wraiths, the Witch-king of Angmar, was destroyed.
Even so the battle would have been lost but for the
coming of Aragorn. In the hour of need he sailed up
Anduin from the south, in the fleet which he captured
from the Corsairs of Umbar, bringing new strength; and
he unfurled the banner of the kings.
After taking counsel the Host of the West marches to
the Black Gate of Mordor. There it is trapped and sur-
rounded by the forces of Sauron. But in that hour Frodo
the Halfling with his faithful servant reached Mount
Doom through perils beyond hope and cast the Ring
into the Fire. Then Sauron was unmade and his power
passed away like a cloud and the Dark Tower fell in
utter ruin. This is that Frodo who was long remembered
in the songs of Men as Frodo of the Nine Fingers, and
renowned as one of the greatest heroes of Gondor; but
though often later this was forgotten he was not a Man
of Gondor but a Halfling of the Shire.
The Host of the West enters Mordor and destroys all
the Orc-holds. All Men that had allied themselves with
Sauron were slain or subjugated.
In the early summer Aragorn was crowned King of
Gondor in Minas Tirith taking the name of Elessar (the
Elfstone). He became thus King both of Arnor and
Gondor, and overlord of the ancient allies of Mordor to
whom he now granted mercy and peace. He found a
seedling of the White Tree and planted it.
At midsummer Arwen came with Elrond and
Galadriel and her brethren, and she was wedded with
Aragorn Elessar, and made the choice of Luthien.
In Gondor a new era and a new calendar was made,
to begin with the day of the fall of Barad-dur, March 25,
3019. But the Third Age is not held to have ended on
that day, but with the going of the Three Rings. For after
the destruction of the Ruling Ring the Three Rings of
the Eldar lost their virtue. Then Elrond prepared at last
to depart from Middle-earth and follow Celebrian.
3021. In the autumn of this year Elrond, Galadriel, and
Mithrandir, the guardians of the Three Rings, rode west-
ward through the Shire to the Grey Havens. With them
went, it is said, the Halflings Bilbo and Frodo, the Ring-
bearers. Cirdan had made ready a ship for them, and
they set sail at evening and passed into the uttermost
West. With their passing ended the Third Age, the
twilight between the Elder Days and the Afterworld
which then began.
Here ends the main matter of the Red Book. But more is to be
learned both from notes and additions in later hands in the Red
Book (less trustworthy than the earlier parts which are said to
have been derived from the Halflings that were actual witnesses
of the deeds); and from the Annals of the House of Elessar, of
which parts of a Halfling translation (made it is said by the
Tooks) are preserved.
So much may here be noted. The reign of King Aragorn was
long and glorious. In his time Minas Tirith was rebuilt and
made stronger and fairer than before; for the king had the
assistance of the stone-wrights of Erebor. Gimli Gloin's son of
Erebor had been his companion and had fought in all the battles
of the War of the Ring, and when peace was made he brought
part of the dwarf-folk and they dwelt in the White Mountains
and wrought great and wonderful works in Gondor. And the
Dwarves also forged anew great gates of mithril and steel to
replace those broken in the siege. Legolas Thranduil's son had
also been one of the king's companions and he brought Elves
out of Greenwood (to which name Mirkwood now returned)
and they dwelt in Ithilien, and it became the fairest region in all
the Westlands. But after King Elessar died Legolas followed at
last the yearning of his heart and sailed over Sea. It is said in the
Red Book that he took Gimli Gloin's son with him because of
their great friendship, such as had never else been seen between
Elf and Dwarf. But this is scarcely to be believed: that a dwarf
should be willing to leave Middle-earth for any love, or that the
Elves should admit him to Avallon if he would go, or that the
Lords of the West should permit it. In the Red Book it is said
that he went also out of desire to see again the Lady Galadriel
whose beauty he revered; and that she being mighty among the
Eldar obtained this grace for him. More cannot be said of this
strange matter.
It is said also that in 3020 Eowyn Eomund's daughter wedded
Faramir, last Steward of Gondor and first Prince of Ithilien, in
the king's house of Rohan. Eomer her brother received the king-
ship upon the field of battle from Theoden ere he died. In 3022
(or Fourth Age 1) he wedded Lothiriel daughter of Imrahil of
Dol Amroth, and his reign over Rohan was long and blessed,
and he was known as Eomer Eadig.
King Elessar and Queen Arwen reigned long and in great
blessedness; but at the last the weariness came upon the King,
and then, while still in vigour of mind and body, he laid himself
down after the manner of the ancient kings of Numenor, and
died, in the hundred and second year of his reign and the
hundred and ninetieth year of his life.
Then Arwen departed and dwelt alone and widowed in the
fading woods of Loth-lorien; and it came to pass for her as
Elrond foretold that she would not leave the world until she had
lost all for which she made her choice. But at last she laid her-
self to rest on the hill of Cerin Amroth, and there was her green
grave until the shape of the world was changed.
Of Eldarion son of Elessar it was foretold that he should rule
a great realm, and that it should endure for a hundred gener-
ations of Men after him, that is until a new age brought in again
new things; and from him should come the kings of many
realms in long days after. But if this foretelling spoke truly, none
now can say, for Gondor and Arnor are no more; and even the
chronicles of the House of Elessar and all their deeds and glory
are lost.
The account of the history of the Realms in Exile in The Heirs of
Elendil, where it is set out in the framework of the succession of the
kings and rulers, necessarily overlaps with that in the Tale of Years,
where it forms part of a general chronology of the Westlands. It would
therefore be interesting to know whether my father wrote the latter
before or after the final (unrevised) manuscript C of The Heirs of
Elendil; but the evidence on this question is strangely conflicting. On
the one hand, the entry in T 4 for the year 1960 seems to establish that
it preceded C, where the interregnum after the death of King Ondohir
was only of one year and Earnil II came to the throne in 1945, and the
correction to the text (see note 23) was plainly made after the manu-
script was completed. There are other pointers to the same conclusion;
thus the passage under 2050 concerning the Stewards was taken
straight from the B text of The Heirs of Elendil (see p. 217). On the
other hand, there are a number of features in T 4 that seem to show
that my father had C in front of him: as for example the statement
under 1409 that the palantir of Amon Sul was destroyed, where C
(before correction) had 'the palantir is broken', but B (in an addition)
had 'no one knows what became of the Stone' (pp. 194, 209); or again
the two challenges made by the Lord of the Ringwraiths to Earnur, in
2043 and 2050, which very clearly first entered The Heirs of Elendil
in C (pp. 201, 217). Close similarities of wording are found between
entries in T 4 and both B and C.
One might suppose that the writing of T 4 and the writing of C pro-
ceeded together; but the two manuscripts are at once very distinct in
style, and very homogeneous throughout their length. Each gives the
impression that it was written from start to finish connectedly. On the
other hand, there can be little doubt that T 3 and T 4 belong to very
much the same time as The Heirs of Elendil.
My father may not have precisely intended such near-repetition
between the two works as occurs, but it is possible to regard it as the
necessary consequence of his design at that time. This long Tale of
Years, ample in expression, seems to me to show that he wished,
having at long last brought the story to its end, to provide for the
reader a clear and accessible (still in the manner of the story) 'con-
spectus' of all the diverse threads and histories that came together in
the War of the Ring: of the Hobbits, the Wizards, the Dunedain of the
North, the rulers of Gondor, the Rohirrim, the Ringwraiths, the Dark
Lord; the High-elves of Rivendell and Lindon also, the Dwarves of
Erebor and Moria, and further back the lost world of Numenor. This
account (a chronology, but with a narrative view and tone) was to be
read at the end of the book, a Tale of Years in which the story of the
Fellowship and the quest of the Ringbearer could be seen, when all
was over, as the culmination of a great and many-rooted historical
process - for which chronology was a prime necessity. And so also, at
the end of this Tale of Years, he moved 'outside the frame' of the story,
and looked further on to the later lives of Gimli and Legolas, of
Faramir and Eowyn and Eomer, the reign and the deaths of Elessar
and Arwen, and the realm of their son Eldarion in 'the Afterworld'.
I have mentioned when discussing the Tale of Years of the Second
Age (p. 177) that an amanuensis typescript in two copies (T 5) - very
intelligently and professionally done - was made from the manuscript
T 4; and that one of them was emended in a most radical fashion by
my father, chiefly if by no means exclusively in order to abbreviate the
text by the omission of phrases that could be regarded as not strictly
necessary. This cutting out of phrases ceases altogether towards the
end, at the beginning of the entry for 3019.
There is no certain evidence to show when the typescript was made,
but I think that it was a long while after the writing of the manuscript.
The question is in any case not of much importance, for what is certain
is that the typescript was sent to the publishers in 1954; in a letter of
22 October in that year Rayner Unwin said:
The Tale of Years which I am returning herewith was interesting,
but as you, I think, agree, probably too long for the appendices as
it stands. I suggest that considerable reduction be made in the
accounts of events already told in The Lord of the Rings, and a
somewhat more staccato style be adopted (make less of a narrative
of the events of the Third Age).
It was of course the typescript in its unrevised form that he had sent:
the revision (in so far as it entailed abbreviation) was obviously under-
taken in response to Rayner Unwin's criticism.
If my interpretation of my father's intention for the Tale of Years is
at all near the truth, it may be supposed that he carried out this work
of shortening with reluctance; certainly, in the result, the amount lost
from the original text was not proportionately very great, the long
concluding passage was not touched, and the rounded, 'narrative'
manner was little diminished. But after this time there is no external
evidence that I know of to indicate whether there was further dis-
cussion of the matter - whether, for instance, my father was given a
more express limitation with regard to length. There is indeed nothing
actually to show that the subsequent far more drastic compression
was not his own idea. But there is also nothing to bridge the gap before
the next text, a typescript (from which the entries before 1900 are
missing, and which breaks off in the middle of that for 2941) already
in full 'staccato' mode, and approaching (after a good deal of correc-
tion) closely the text in Appendix B. After this the only further extant
text is the typescript from which Appendix B was printed.
NOTES.
1. On the name Dol Dugul for later Dol Guldur see VIII.122. In
the manuscripts of The Lord of the Rings it is always spelt Dol
Dughul (replacing original Dol Dugol).
2. On the date of Deagol's finding the One Ring see pp. 166-7.
3. 'They become Hobbits': cf. the passage in The Shadow of the
Past, later revised, cited on p. 66, $20.
4. From this point all the dates are given also in the years of the
Shire Reckoning, but I do not include these in the text. Here 1600
is made S.R.1, but in all the following annals the final figure of
the year corresponds in both reckonings, as '2940 (S.R.1340)', as
if S.R.1 = 1601. The correction to 1601 was not made until the
third text, T 4.
5. On Northworthy see p. 5 and note 3.
6. King Earnur is named in the text of The Lord of the Rings, in the
chapter The Window on the West (TT p. 278), where it was a late
change from Elessar (VIII.153).
7. In Appendix B Elrond wedded Celebrian 2400 years before, in
Third Age 100 (changed to 109 in the Second Edition).
8. Finduilas, earlier name of Arwen: see VIII.370, etc.
9. This was changed later to 'three parts Elven-blood'.
10. To this point the text was retained in abbreviated form in the
preamble to the annals of the Third Age in Appendix B.
11. Earendur: T 3 has here Earendil (see p. 189).
12. In this text Isildur's death had been recorded under Second Age
3441 (p. 177).
13. In T 3 there are no entries at all before the coming of the Istari
c.1000, but my father noted on that manuscript that more should
be said here of Gondor and Arnor.
14. This entry concerning the Istari was preserved with some
alteration in the preamble to the annals of the Third Age in
Appendix B.
15. T 3 had here '(of whose kindred they were maybe a branch)',
which was struck out.
16. With this passage concerning the region in which the Hobbits
anciently dwelt and the reasons for their westward migration cf.
the Prologue, FR p. 12.
17. T 3 has here: 'The families of the Harfoots, the most numerous
of the Periannath (though this people were ever small in number),
crossed the Misty Mountains and came into eastern Eriador.
The Fallowhides, another and smaller clan, moved north along
the eaves of the Forest, for the shadow was deeper in its southern
parts. The Stoors tarried still beside the River.'
18. In T 3 the same is said concerning the 'Fallowhides', but the
Stoors 'came over the Redhorn Pass into the desolate land of
Hollin'.
19. On the date 1601 see note 4. Subsequent entries for some dis-
tance are given also in Shire-reckoning, but I have not included
these dates in the text printed.
20. With this passage cf. the Prologue text given on p. 9. The entry in
T 3 here begins: 'Owing to an increase in their numbers, which
became too great for the small Bree-land, many of the Periannath
crossed the R. Baranduin'; the text is then as in T 4, but without
the reference to the Stoors.
21. In both the B and C texts of The Heirs of Elendil Angomaite and
Sangahyanda were the great-grandsons of Kastamir (so also in
Appendix A, RK p. 328).
22. T 3 ends the entry for 1640 'The Periannath were little harmed,
for they mingled little with other folk.'
23. This entry belongs to the stage in the history of Gondor when
there was an interregnum of sixteen years before Earnil II came
to the throne, during which time Pelendur the Steward ruled the
realm (see p. 216). It was later corrected to read: '1945 Earnil,
descendant of a previous king, receives the crown of Gondor.'
24. In T 3 it is said that Arvedui was slain by the Witch-king; this
apparently agrees with the original form of the B text of The
Heirs of Elendil (p. 210).
25. T 3 has here: 'but after the end of the kingdom they claim "The
Shire" as their own land, and elect a "Shire-king" from among
their own chieftains.' On the name Shireking or Shirking see
pp. 5-6, 87, 107. It seems to have been in this entry in T 3 that
Bucca of the Marish first emerged.
26. This record of Saruman's coming to Orthanc is far earlier than in
the additions made to text C of The Heirs of Elendil, where
(pp. 205-6) 'Saruman comes to Orthanc' during the rule of the
Steward Beren (2743-63), and in that of the Steward Turgon
(2914-53) 'Saruman takes possession of Orthanc, and fortifies
it'. In Appendix B 'Saruman takes up his abode in Isengard' in
2759.
27. These two entries concerning the finding of the Ring and
Gollum's disappearance in the Misty Mountains are nine hun-
dred years later than in the earliest text (p. 225).
28. With the entry for 2060 the substituted pages (see pp. 226 - 7)
begin. The original entry for this year began:
The White Council is formed to unite and direct the resistance
to the growing forces of evil, which the Wise perceive are all
being governed and guided in a plan of hatred for the Eldar and
the remnants of Numenor. The Council believe that Sauron has
returned. Curunir, or Saruman the White, is chosen to be head
of the White Council ...
The original text was then the same as that in the entry that
replaced it under the year 2463.
29. The opening of this entry in T 3 seems to have been written first:
'Isumbras I, head of the rising Took family, becomes first Shire-
king (Shirking) of the Took-line', then changed immediately to
'becomes seventeenth [> thirteenth] Shire-king and first of the
Took-line.'
30. The dates of the births of Elladan and Elrohir, and of Arwen, are
given thus as two separate entries for the same year 2349 in the
replacement text, with Arwen's birth subsequently changed to
2359. In the rejected version her birth was placed in 2400. Con-
comitantly with the far earlier date introduced much later for the
wedding of Elrond and Celebrian (see note 7), in Appendix B
Elladan and Elrohir were born in 139 (changed to 130 in the
Second Edition) and Arwen in 241.
31. In The Heirs of Elendil Denethor I was the son not of Dior the
ninth Steward but of Dior's sister (called in the C text Rian): pp.
204, 219. - The rejected text having placed the forming of the
White Council four hundred years earlier, under 2060 (note 28),
at this point it moved directly from the end of the Watchful Peace
and the return of Sauron to Dol Guldur in 2460 to the attack on
Gondor in the days of Denethor I. The postponement of the
establishment of the White Council was the primary reason for
the rejection and replacement of the two pages in the original
manuscript, and the entries following 2463 were copied with
little change into the new text to the point where it rejoins the
old, near the end of the entry for 2510.
32. As in the earliest text (p. 226), T 3 states that Celebrian was slain
by the Orcs.
33. 'Thror ... founds the realm of Erebor': the history of Thror's
ancestors had not yet emerged.
34. The year 2698 was the date of the death of Ecthelion I in the texts
of The Heirs of Elendil.
35. The War of the Dwarves and Orcs entered the history at this time.
In very difficult scribbled notes at the end of T 3 my father asked
himself: 'When were the Dwarf and Goblin wars? When did
Moria become finally desolate?' He noted that since the wars
were referred to by Thorin in The Hobbit they 'must have been
recent', and suggested that there was 'an attempt to enter Moria
in Thrain's time', perhaps 'an expedition from Erebor to Moria'.
'But the appearance of the Balrog and the desolation of Moria
must be more ancient, possibly as far back as c.1980-2000'. He
then wrote:
'After fall of Erebor Thror tried to visit Moria and was killed
by a goblin. The dwarves assembled a force and fought Orcs
on east side of Moria and did great slaughter, but could not
enter Moria because of "the terror". Dain returns to the Iron
Hills, but Thorin and Thrain wander about.'
Entries were then added to the text of T 3 which were taken
up into T 4. At this time the story was that Thrain and Thorin
accompanied Thror, but made their escape. - Much later the
dates of the war were changed from 2766-9 to 2793-9.
36. 'the fourteenth Thain': that is, of the Took line.
37. The statement here that Thrain had come to Dol Guldur seeking
for one of the Seven Rings is strange, for the story that he received
Thror's ring and that it was taken from him in the dungeons of
Sauron goes back to the earliest text of The Council of Elrond
(VI.398, 403). It seems to be a lapse without more significance;
see further p. 252.
38. The date of the death of the Steward Belecthor II in all three texts
of The Heirs of Elendil is 2872. The date 2852 in the later type-
scripts of the Tale of Years and in Appendix B is evidently a
casual error.
39. In text C of The Heirs of Elendil (p. 206) the final desolation
of Ithilien, where however Gondor keeps hidden strongholds,
is placed in the time of the Steward Turin II (2882 - 2914). In
Appendix B the corresponding entry is given under 2901.
Note on changes made to the manuscript T 4
of the Tale of Years.
(i) The Stoors.
c.1150. The original entry was covered by a pasted slip that cannot
be removed, but the underlying text as printed (p. 229) can be read
with fair certainty. The replacement differs only in the statement
concerning the Stoors: after coming into Eriador by the Redhorn
Pass 'some then moved south towards Dunland; others dwelt for a
long time in the angle between the Loudwater and the Hoarwell.'
c.1400. This entry was struck out and replaced by another under the
year 1600, but the date was then changed to 1550. This was almost
the same as the rejected form, but for 'some of the Stoors return to
Wilderland' has 'the northern Stoors leave the Angle and return to
Wilderland'.
On the evolution of the early history of the Stoors see pp. 66 - 7,
$$22-3.
(ii) Saruman.
c.2000. The far earlier coming of Saruman to Isengard (see note 26)
was allowed to stand, but the reference to his becoming the head
of the White Council in 2060 (note 28) was removed with the
displacement of its forming to four hundred years later (2463). See
p. 262, note 5.
2851. Saruman next appears in this entry, which was changed to
read:
He does not reveal his thought to the Council, but sets a watch
upon Anduin and the Gladden Fields, where he himself secretly
searches for the One Ring.
The words of the original text 'and he fortifies Isengard' were pre-
sumably struck out while the manuscript was in progress, since they
reappear under 2911 (where they were again removed).
2911. The last sentence in the original text was altered to 'He re-
doubles the search for the Ring, but he says nothing to the Council.'
2940. This entry was not changed.
2953. The conclusion of this long entry, after the words 'the Power
of the One Ring', was expanded thus:
The White Council meets and debates concerning the Rings, fear-
ing especially that Sauron may find the One. Saruman feigns that
he has discovered that it passed down Anduin to the Sea. He then
withdraws to Isengard and fortifies it, and consorts no more with
members of the Council. But Mithrandir (Gandalf) journeys far
and wide ...
The new text then returns to the original. (Saruman's pretence that
he knew that the Ring had gone down Anduin to the Sea had been
cut out of the entry for 2851, and the reference to his fortifying
Isengard from that for 2911.)
c.3000. The last sentence of the original text was replaced thus:
His spies bring him rumours of Smeagol-Gollum and his ring,
and of Bilbo of the Shire. He is angry that Gandalf should have
concealed this matter from him; and he spies upon Gandalf, and
upon the Shire.
(iii) Gollum.
c.2000 and c.2010. These entries concerning the finding of the Ring
and Gollum's disappearance were struck out and replaced by addi-
tions under 2463 and 2470 (the dates in Appendix B). Many other
additions were made concerning Gollum, but these are closely
similar to those in Appendix B. There is no mention of his 'becom-
ing acquainted with Shelob' under 2980, but an addition to the
original entry for 3001 says 'About this time Gollum was captured
and taken to Mordor and there held in prison.'
(iv) The return of Sauron to Mordor.
In the original text of T 4 it was said in the entry for 2953 that Sauron
declared himself and his true name, re-entered Mordor prepared for
him by the Ringwraiths, and rebuilt Barad-dur. In the revision, an
addition was made to 2941: 'The Sorcerer returns in secret to Mordor
which the Ringwraiths have prepared for him'; and at the same time
the entry for 2953 was altered to read: 'At this time Sauron, having
gathered fresh power, openly declares himself and his true name again,
and claims Lordship over the West. He rebuilds Barad-dur ...'
The corresponding dates in Appendix B are 2942 and 2951.
(v) The Dwarves.
The statement under 2850 that Thrain went to Dol Guldur seeking
one of the Seven Rings (see note 37) was replaced thus: 'Thrain was
the possessor of the last of the Seven Rings of Power to survive
destruction or recapture; but the ring was taken from him in Dol
Guldur with torment, and he died there.' At the same time a new entry
was added for the year 2840: 'Thrain the Dwarf goes wandering and
is captured by the Sorcerer (about 2845?)'.
The entry for 2590 recording the founding of the realm of Erebor
was changed to read: 'In the Far North dragons multiply again. Thror
... comes south and re-establishes the realm of Erebor ...' At the same
time, at the end of the entry, this addition was made: 'He was the
great-great-grandson of Thrain I Nain's son' (which does not agree
with the genealogical table in Appendix A, RK p. 361: see pp. 276 - 7).
For the correction of the entry for 1960 (the accession of Earnil II
to the throne of Gondor after a long interregnum) see note 23.
All the revisions of T 4 given above were taken up into the type-
script T 5 as it was first made.
IX.
THE MAKING OF APPENDIX A.
(I) THE REALMS IN EXILE.
As with the major manuscript T 4 of the Tale of Years given in the last
chapter, I believe that years passed after the making of the manuscript
C of The Heirs of Elendil (pp. 191 ff.) before my father took up the
matter again, with a view to its radical alteration, when The Lord of
the Rings was assured of publication. His later work on this, almost
entirely in typescript, is extremely difficult to explain.
The earliest text, which I will call I, of the later period is a very
rough typescript which begins thus:
The Heirs of Elendil
There is no space here to set out the lines of the kings and lords
of Arnor and Gondor, even in such brief form as they appear in
the Red Book. For the compiling of these annals the Hobbits
must have drawn both on the books of lore in Rivendell, and
on records made available to them by King Elessar, such as the
'Book of the Kings' of Gondor, and the 'House of the Stewards';
for until the days of the War of the Ring they had known little
of such matters, and afterwards were chiefly interested in them
in so far as they concerned Elessar, or helped in the correction
of the dating of their own annals.
The line of Arnor, the Heirs of Isildur. After Elendil and Isil-
dur there were eight high kings in Arnor, ending with Earendur.
The realm of Arnor then became divided, and the kings ceased
to take names in High-elven form. But the line was maintained
by Amlaith son of Earendur, who ruled at Fornost.
After Amlaith there were thirteen kings (1) at Fornost, of whom
the last was Arvedui, the twenty-fifth of the line. When he was
lost at sea, the kingship came to an end in the North, and
Fornost was deserted; but the line was continued by the Lords
of the Dunedain, who were fostered by Elrond.
Of these the first was Aranarth son of Arvedui, and after him
there followed fifteen chieftains, ending with Aragorn II, who
became king again both of Arnor and Gondor.
It was the token and the marvel of the Northern line that,
though their power departed and their people dwindled to few,
through all the many generations the succession was unbroken
from father to son. Also, though the length of the lives of the
Dunedain grew ever less in Middle-earth, and their waning was
swifter in the North, while the kings lasted in Gondor, after-
wards it was otherwise; and many of the chieftains of the North
lived still to twice the age of the oldest of other Men. Aragorn
indeed lived to be one hundred and ninety years of age, longer
than any of his line since Arvegil son of King Argeleb II; but in
Aragorn the dignity of the kings of old was renewed, and he
received in some measure their former gifts.
In his opening words 'There is no space here to set out the lines of
the kings and lords of Arnor and Gondor' my father was surely think-
ing of The Heirs of Elendil in the elaborate form it had reached in the
manuscript C. Merely to set out the names and dates of the rulers
would take little enough space, yet that would serve little purpose in
itself. It seems plain that he either knew or feared that he would be
under severe constraint in the telling of the history of the Realms in
Exile; but it seems extraordinary that he should have felt impelled
to reduce the history of Arnor and the later petty realms almost to
vanishing point.
After the passage given above, however, he continued with The line
of Gondor, the Heirs of Anarion, and here he adopted another course:
to give 'excerpts' from the history of Gondor. He began with a passage
that remained with little change as the opening paragraph of the
section Gondor and the Heirs of Anarion in Appendix A (I, iv); but
then passed at once to 'the first great evil' that came upon Gondor, the
civil war of the Kin-strife, thus omitting the first fourteen centuries of
its history. This was quite briefly told, and was followed by a short
account of 'the second and greatest evil', the plague that came in the
reign of Telemnar; and that by 'the third evil', the invasion of the
Wainriders. He had recounted the marriage of Arvedui, last king in the
North, to the daughter of King Ondohir, and the great victory of
Earnil in 1944, when he abandoned the text.
One might suppose that he perceived that, in so short a space as he
had determined was necessary, this would not work. The 'excerpts'
could not stand in isolation without further explanation. At the end
of this text he had written that the northern kingdom could send
no aid to Gondor 'for Angmar renewed its attack upon Arthedain':
yet neither Angmar nor Arthedain had been mentioned. What was
required (one might think) was a brief precis of the whole history of
the two kingdoms; but as will be seen in a moment, this was not at all
what he had in mind.
It is notable that at this stage he said very little about the sources for
the history; and it seems probable that his conception of them was still
very undeveloped.
In a second text, H, still with the same title, he substantially ex-
panded the opening passage:
Until the War of the Ring the people of the Shire had little
knowledge of the history of the Westlands beyond the traditions
of their own wanderings; but afterwards all that concerned the
King Elessar became of deep interest to them, while in the Buck-
land the tales of Rohan were no less esteemed. Thus the Red
Book from its beginning contained many annals, genealogies,
and traditions of the realms of the South, drawn through Bilbo
from the books of lore in Rivendell, or through Frodo and
Peregrin from the King himself, and from the records of Gondor
that he opened to them: such as 'The Book of the Kings and
Stewards' (now lost), and the Akallabeth, that is 'The Downfall
of Numenor'.(2) To this matter other notes and tales were added
at a later date by other hands, after the passing of Elessar.
There is no space here to set out this matter, even in the brief
forms in which it usually appears in the Book; but some
excerpts are given that may serve to illustrate the story of the
War of the Ring, or to fill up some of the gaps in the account.
My father now expressly referred to 'excerpts' from the Red Book. He
retained from text I the very brief statement concerning the Northern
Line; and in the section on the Southern Line he did as he had done in
I, omitting all the history of Gondor before the Kin-strife. But when he
came to the story of the civil war he expanded it to ten times its length
in I. One may wonder what his intention now was in respect of the
shape and length of this Appendix; but I doubt whether he was think-
ing of such questions when he wrote it. The historian of Gondor
reasserted himself, and he told the story as he wished to tell it.
The remarkable thing is that this text was the immediate forerunner
of the story of the Kin-strife as it was published in Appendix A (in the
First Edition: in the Second Edition the events leading to it were
altered and expanded, see p. 258).(3) And at the words 'Eldakar ... was
king for fifty-eight years, of which ten were spent in exile' (RK p. 328)
text II was abandoned in its turn.(4)
In a third text, HI, my father retained the actual first page of II,
carrying the opening remarks on the sources and the scanty statement
on the Northern Line. For the Southern Line he entered, as before,
immediately into the history of the Kin-strife, and brought the text
virtually word for word to its form in Appendix A in the First Edition.
Then, having recounted the plague and the invasion of the Wainriders
without much enlarging what was said in text I, he wrote a very full
account of the claim of Arvedui on the southern crown: and this was
for most of its length word for word the text in Appendix A, begin-
ning 'On the death of Ondohir and his sons ...' (RK p. 329), with the
record of the exchanges between Arvedui and the Council of Gondor,
and the appearance of Malbeth the Seer who named him Arvedui at
his birth. The only difference is the absence of the reference to the
Steward Pelendur, who in the Appendix A text is said to have 'played
the chief part' in the rejection of the claim.
He then went on, in a passage that was again retained in Appen-
dix A (RK pp. 330-1), to describe the message of Earnil to Arvedui,
the fleet sent into the North under Earnur, and the destruction of
Arthedain by Angmar. The story of the defeat of the Witch-king (RK
pp. 331-2) had not yet been written; and with a brief reference to the
overthrow of Angmar my father continued with 'It was thus in the
reign of King Earnil, as later became clear, that the Witch-king
escaping from the North came to Mordor ...' With the account of the
character of Earnur (RK p. 332) text III ends.(5)
By now it can be seen how the long account of the Realms in Exile
in Appendix A came into being. Strange as it seems, the evidence of the
texts described above can lead only to this conclusion: that what
began as an attempt (for whatever reason) to reduce the rich material
of The Heirs of Elendil in a more than drastic fashion developed by
steps into a long and finely written historical essay taking up some
twenty printed pages. What considerations made this acceptable in
relation to the requirements of brevity, in the absence of any evidence
external to the texts themselves I am entirely unable to explain.
There are three versions of a brief text, which I will call IV for it
certainly followed III, in which the opening section of Appendix A
(I The Numenorean Kings. (i) Numenor), RK pp. 313 ff., is seen
emerging. The opening paragraph 'Feanor was the greatest of the
Eldar in arts and lore ...', very briefly recounting the history of the
Silmarils, the rebellion of Feanor, and the war against Morgoth, was
not present in the First Edition, where, as here in IV, the section
opened with the words 'There were only three unions of the High
Elves and Men ...'; but at this stage my father had not yet introduced
the brief history of Numenor (RK pp. 315 ff., beginning 'As a reward
for their sufferings in the cause against Morgoth ...'), which arose
from his attempt to curtail and compress the Tale of Years of the
Second Age (see pp. 180-1), and the passage concerning the Choice
of Elros and Elrond, here called i-Pheredhil, differed from that
published.
At the end of the First Age an irrevocable choice was given
to the Half-elven, to which kindred they would belong. Elros
chose to be of Mankind, and was granted a great life-span; and
he became the first King of Numenor. His descendants were
long-lived but mortal. Later when they became powerful they
begrudged the choice of their forefather, desiring the immor-
tality within the life of the world that was the fate of the Elves.
In this way began their rebellion which, under the evil teaching
of Sauron, brought about the Downfall of Numenor and the
ruin of the ancient world.
Elrond chose to be of Elvenkind, and became a master of wis-
dom. To him therefore was granted the same grace as to those
of the High Elves that still lingered in Middle-earth: that when
weary at last of the mortal lands they could take ship from the
Grey Havens and pass into the Uttermost West, notwithstand-
ing the change of the world. But to the children of Elrond a
choice was also appointed: to pass with him from the circles of
the world; or if they wedded with one of Mankind, to become
mortal and die in Middle-earth. For Elrond, therefore, all
chances of the War of the Ring were fraught with sorrow.
Elros was the first king of Numenor, and was afterwards
known by the royal name of Tar-Minyatur.
The fourth king of Numenor was Tar-Elendil. From his
daughter Silmarien came the line of the Lords of Andunie, of
whom Amandil the Faithful was the last.
Elendil the Tall was the son of Amandil. He was the leader of
the remnant of the Faithful who escaped from the Downfall
with the Nine Ships, and established realms in exile in the
North-west of Middle-earth. His sons were Isildur and Anarion.
Then follows in IV the lists of the kings, chieftains, and stewards of
the Realms in Exile much as they are given in Appendix A (RK pp.
318-19). The references to Numenor in the passage just given were of
course removed when the much longer account was introduced.
The Choice of the Children of Elrond as stated here differs notably
from that in the final form, in the express statement that they would
choose mortality if they chose to wed a mortal. In the text T 4 of
the Tale of Years (p. 234, entry for the year 2300), as also in T 3, the
choice is (as here in Appendix A): 'if [Elrond] departed they should
have then the choice either to pass over the Sea with him, or to become
mortal, if they remained behind.'(6)
After the abandoned text III, in which the account of the Northern
Line was still confined to half a page, there is scarcely any rejected,
preliminary material before the final typescript from which section
I (iii) of Appendix A was printed, Eriador, Arnor, and the Heirs of
Isildur. On the evidence of the extant texts this final typescript was the
very one in which my father first set down the history of the North
Kingdom in continuous narrative form. The story of Arvedui and the
Lossoth, the Snowmen of Forochel, RK pp. 321-2, 'wrote itself' in
precisely the form in which it was printed. But this is scarcely credible
(see p. 279).
At the end of the story of the Lossoth, however, my father is seen
in rejected pages taking a course that he decided against. At the end
of the penultimate paragraph of this section (concerning the journeys
of King Elessar to Annuminas and the Brandywine Bridge, RK p. 324)
he continued: 'Arador was the grandfather of the king', and typed out
part of a new text of the story of Aragorn and Arwen, which after
some distance was abandoned. On this matter see the next section of
this chapter, pp. 268 ff.
The next section of Appendix A, I (iv), Gondor and the Heirs of
Anarion, is a fearful complex of typescript pages. Though it is possible
to unravel the textual history up to a point,(7) it defies presentation,
which is in any case unnecessary. The whole complex clearly belongs
to one time. It was now that new elements entered the history, notably
the story of the overthrow of the Witch-king of Angmar (RK pp.
331-2), and the account of the service of Aragorn under the name
Thorongil with the Steward Ecthelion II (only referred to in a brief
sentence in The Heirs of Elendil, p. 206), and of his relations with
Denethor (RK pp. 335-6).
Note on the expansion of the tale of the Kin-strife
in the Second Edition.
In the First Edition of The Lord of the Rings the account of the Kin-
strife (or more accurately of the events leading to it) was much briefer
than that in the Second Edition, and read as follows (RK pp. 325-6 in
both editions):(8)
Nonetheless it was not until the days of Romendacil II that the
first great evil came upon Gondor: the civil war of the Kin-strife, in
which great loss and ruin was caused and never fully repaired.
'The Northmen increased greatly in the peace brought by the
power of Gondor. The kings showed them favour, since they were
the nearest in kin of lesser Men to the Dunedain (being for the most
part descendants of those peoples from whom the Edain of old had
come); and they gave them wide lands beyond Anduin south of
Greenwood the Great, to be a defence against men of the East. For
in the past the attacks of the Easterlings had come mostly over the
plain between the Inland Sea and the Ash Mountains.
'In the days of Romendacil II their attacks began again, though at
first with little force; but it was learned by the King that the North-
men did not always remain true to Gondor, and some would join
forces with the Easterlings, either out of greed for spoil, or in the
furtherance of feuds among their princes.
'Romendacil therefore fortified the west shore of Anduin as far as
the inflow of the Limlight, and forbade any stranger to pass down
the River beyond the Emyn Muil. He it was that built the pillars of
the Argonath at the entrance to Nen Hithoel. But since he needed
men, and desired to strengthen the bond between Gondor and the
Northmen, he took many of them into his service and gave to some
high rank in his armies.
'In return he sent his son Valacar to dwell for a while with
Vidugavia, who called himself the King of Rhovanion, and was
indeed the most powerful of their princes, though his own realm lay
between Greenwood and the River Running. There Valacar was
wedded to Vidugavia's daughter, and so caused later the evil war of
the Kin-strife.
'For the high men of Gondor already looked askance at the
Northmen among them ...
From here the text of the Second Edition returns to that of the First,
but there was a further alteration in the next paragraph, where the
First Edition had: 'To the lineage of his father he added the fearless
spirit of the Northmen. When the confederates led by descendants of
the kings rose against him ...', inserting the sentence 'He was hand-
some and valiant, and showed no sign of ageing more swiftly than his
father.'
As I have mentioned earlier (p. 190), in 1965, the year before the
publication of the Second Edition, my father wrote a new version of
this account; this he inserted into the late typescript copy D of The
Heirs of Elendil. It is remarkable that though this new text was in-
corporated, in more concise form, into Appendix A, he actually wrote
it as an addition to the text of The Heirs of Elendil, to be placed
beneath the nineteenth king Romendakil II, whose entry (see p. 198)
he emended, on the typescript D, thus (the dates refer to birth, life-
span, and death):
19 Romendakil II 1126 240 1366
(Minalkar) (Lieutenant of the King 1240, King 1304)
In the text of the First Edition there was no reference to the name
Romendacil as having been taken by Calmacil's son after his victory
over the Easterlings in 1248, and indeed there was no mention of the
victory. In the Second Edition, in the list of the Kings of Gondor (RK
p. 318), the original text 'Calmacil 1304, Romendacil II 1366,
Valacar' was altered to 'Calmacil 1304, Minalcar (regent 1240-1304),
crowned as Romendacil II 1304, died 1366, Valacar'.
There is no need to give the whole of the new version, since the
substance of it was largely retained in the revised text of Appendix A,
but there are some portions of it that may be recorded. As originally
composed, it opened:
Narmakil (9) and Kalmakil were like their father Atanatar lovers of
ease; but Minalkar elder son of Kalmakil was a man of great force
after the manner of his great-grandsire Hyarmendakil, whom he
revered. Already at the end of Atanatar's reign his voice was listened
to in the councils of the realm; and in 1240 Narmakil, wishing to
be relieved of cares of state, gave him the new office and title of
Karma-kundo 'Helm-guardian', that is in terms of Gondor Crown-
lieutenant or Regent. Thereafter he was virtually king, though he
acted in the names of Narmakil and Kalmakil, save in matters of
war and defence over which he had complete authority. His reign is
thus usually dated from 1240, though he was not crowned in the
name of Romendakil until 1304 after the death of his father. The
Northmen increased greatly in the peace brought by the power of
Gondor....
In the long version there is a footnote to the name Vinitharya: 'This, it
is said, bore much the same meaning as Romendakil.' After the birth
of Vinitharya this version continues:
Romendakil gave his consent to the marriage. He could not forbid
it or refuse to recognize it without earning the enmity of Vidugavia.
Indeed all the Northmen would have been angered, and those in
his service would have been no longer to be trusted. He therefore
waited in patience until 1260, and then he recalled Valakar, saying
that it was now time that he took part in the councils of the realm
and the command of its armies. Valakar returned to Gondor with
his wife and children; and with them came a household of noble
men and women of the North. They were welcomed, and at that
time all seemed well. Nonetheless in this marriage lay the seeds of
the first great evil that befell Gondor: the civil war of the Kin-strife,
which brought loss and ruin upon the realm that was never fully
repaired.
Valakar gave to his son the name Eldakar, for public use in
Gondor; and his wife bore herself wisely and endeared herself to all
those who knew her. She learned well the speech and manners of
Gondor, and was willing to be called by the name Galadwen, a
rendering of her Northern name into the Sindarin tongue. She was
a fair and noble lady of high courage, which she imparted to her
children; but though she lived to a great age, as such was reckoned
among her people, she died in 1344 [in one copy > 1332]. Then the
heart of Romendakil grew heavy, foreboding the troubles that were
to come. He had now long been crowned king, and the end of his
reign and life were drawing nearer. Already men were looking
forward to the accession of Valakar when Eldakar would become
heir to the crown. The high men of Gondor had long looked
askance at the Northmen among them, who had borne themselves
more proudly since the coming of Vidumavi. Already among the
Dunedain murmurs were heard that it was a thing unheard of before
that the heir to the crown, or any son of the King should wed one
of lesser race, and short-lived; it was to be feared that her descend-
ants would prove the same and fall from the majesty of the Kings of
Men.
20 Valakar 1194 238 crowned 1366 1432
Valakar was a vigorous king, and his son Eldakar was a man of
great stature, handsome and valiant, and showed no sign of ageing
more swiftly than his father. Nonetheless the disaffection steadily
grew during his reign; and when he grew old there was already open
rebellion in the southern provinces. There were gathered many of
those who declared that they would never accept as king a man half
of foreign race, born in an alien country. 'Vinitharya is his right
name,' they said. 'Let him go back to the land where it belongs!'
NOTES.
1. 'thirteen kings' is an error for 'fourteen kings'.
2. This was almost exactly retained as the opening to Appendix A in
the First Edition, as far as the reference to the Akallabeth, but The
Book of the Kings and Stewards was separated into two works,
which were not said to be lost. (The old opening to Appendix A
was replaced in the Second Edition by an entirely new text, and the
Note on the Shire Records was added at the end of the Prologue.)
The published text then continued:
From Gimli no doubt is derived the information concerning the
Dwarves of Moria, for he remained much attached to both Pere-
grin and Meriadoc. But through Meriadoc alone, it seems, were
derived the tales of the House of Eorl; for he went back to
Rohan many times, and learned the language of the Mark, it is
said. For this matter the authority of Holdwine is often cited,
but that appears to have been the name which Meriadoc himself
was given in Rohan. Some of the notes and tales, however, were
plainly added by other hands at later dates, after the passing of
King Elessar.
Much of this lore appears as notes to the main narrative, in
which case it has usually been included in it; but the additional
material is very extensive, even though it is often set out in brief
and annalistic form. Only a selection from it is here presented,
again greatly reduced, but with the same object as the original
compilers appear to have had: to illustrate the story of the War
of the Ring and its origins and fill up some of the gaps in the
main account.
The absence in the present text of the references to Gimli and
Meriadoc as sources possibly suggests that my father had not yet
decided to include sections on Rohan and the Dwarves in this
Appendix (although brief texts entitled The House of Eorl and Of
Durin's Race were in existence).
3. This version lacked the account (RK pp. 327 - 8) of the great white
pillar above the haven of Umbar set up in memorial of the landing
of Ar-Pharazon in the Second Age. The name of the King of
Rhovanion was Vinitharya; this was corrected on the typescript
to Vidugavia, and the name Vinitharya made that of Eldakar in
his youth.
4. At the top of the page on which this account begins my father
wrote, then or later, 'Hobbit-annal of the Kin-strife'.
5. After the words 'Many of the people that still remained in Ithilien
deserted it' text III continues 'It was at this time that King Earnil
gave Isengard to Saruman.' This agrees with the statement in the
text T 4 of the Tale of Years in the entry c.2000: see p. 233 and
note 26, and p. 251.
6. In the two earlier versions of text IV the conclusion of the passage
was extended, that of the first reading:
Therefore to Elrond all chances of the War of the Ring would
bring grief: to fly with his kin from ruin and the conquering
Shadow, or to be separated from Arwen for ever. For either
Aragorn would perish (and he loved him no less than his sons);
or he would wed Arwen his daughter when he had regained his
inheritance, according to the condition that Elrond himself had
made when first their love was revealed. (See III.252, 256).
7. My father's almost exclusive use of a typewriter at this time
greatly increases the difficulty of elucidating the textual history.
His natural method of composition in manuscript was inhibited;
and he constantly retyped portions of pages without numbering
them.
8. The quotation marks indicated 'actual extracts from the longer
annals and tales that are found in the Red Book'.
9. My father reverted to the use of k instead of c in this text.
(II) THE TALE OF ARAGORN AND ARWEN.
Of the texts of Aragorn and Arwen the earliest in succession is also
very plainly the first actual setting down of the tale. It was not 'a part
of the tale', as it came to be called in Appendix A, and was indeed
quite differently conceived. It is a rough, much corrected manuscript,
which I will call 'A', and a portion of it is in typescript (not separate,
but taking up from manuscript and returning to it on the same pages).
Unless this peculiarity itself suggests that it belongs with the late work
on the Appendices, there seems to be no clear and certain evidence of
its relative date; but its peculiar subsequent history may indicate that
it had been in existence for some time when my father was working on
the narrative of the Realms in Exile described in the preceding section.
The manuscript, which bears the title Of Aragorn and Arwen
Undomiel, begins thus.
In the latter days of the last age [> Ere the Elder Days were
ended],(1) before the War of the Ring, there was a man named
Dirhael [> Dirhoel], and his wife was Evorwen [> Ivorwen]
daughter of Gilbarad, and they dwelt in a hidden fastness in the
wilds of Eriador; for they were of the ancient people of the
Dunedain, that of old were kings of men, but were now fallen
on darkened days. Dirhael [> Dirhoel] and his wife were of high
lineage, being of the blood of Isildur though not of the right line
of the Heirs. They were both foresighted in many things. Their
daughter was Gilrain, a fair maid, fearless and strong as were all
the women of that kin. She was sought in marriage by Arathorn,
the son of Arador who was the Chieftain of the Dunedain of the
North.
Arathorn was a stern man of full years; for the Heirs of Isil-
dur, being men of long life (even to eight score years and more)
who journeyed much and went often into great perils, were not
accustomed to wed until they had laboured long in the world.
But Gilrain was younger than the age at which women of the
Dunedain were wont at that time to take husbands; and she did
not yet desire to be a wife, and sought the counsel of her
parents. Then Dirhael said: 'Arathorn is a mighty man, and he
will be Lord of the Dunedain sooner than men look for, yet soon
again he will be lord no longer; for I forebode that he will be
short-lived.' But Evorwen said: 'That may well be, yet if these
two wed, their child shall be great among the great in this
age of the world, and he shall bring the Dunedain out of the
shadows.'
Therefore Gilrain consented and was wedded to Arathorn;
and it came to pass that after one year Arador was taken by
trolls and slain in the Coldfells, and Arathorn became Lord of
the Dunedain; and again after one year his wife bore a son and
he was named Aragorn. And Aragorn being now the son of the
Heir of Isildur went with his mother and dwelt in the House of
Elrond in Imladris, for such was the custom in that day, and
Elrond had in his keeping the heirlooms of the Dunedain, chief
of which were the shards of the sword of Elendil who came to
Middle-earth out of Numenor at its downfall. In his boyhood
Arathorn also had been fostered in that house, and he was a
friend of Elladan and Elrohir, the sons of Elrond, and often he
went a-hunting with them. Now the sons of Elrond did not hunt
wild beasts, but they pursued the Orcs wherever they might find
them; and this they did because of Celebrian their mother,
daughter of Galadriel.
On a time long ago, as she passed over the Mountains to visit
her mother in the Land of Lorien, Orcs waylaid the road, and
she was taken captive by them and tormented; and though she
was rescued by Elrond and his sons, and brought home and
tended, and her hurts of body were healed, she lay under a great
cloud of fear and she loved Middle-earth no longer; so that at
the last Elrond granted her prayer, and she passed to the Grey
Havens and went into the West, never to return.
Thus it befell that when Aragorn was only two years of age
Arathorn went riding with the sons of Elrond and fought with
Orcs that had made an inroad into Eriador, and he was slain,
for an orc-arrow pierced his eye; and so he proved indeed short-
lived for one of his race, being no more than sixty winters when
he fell.
But the child Aragorn became thus untimely Chieftain of the
Dunedain, and he was nurtured in the House of Elrond, and
there he was loved by all, and Elrond was a father to him.
Straight and tall he grew with grey eyes both keen and grave,
and he was hardy and valiant and strong of wit, and eager to
learn all lore of Elves and Men.
And when he was still but a youth, yet strong withal, he went
abroad with Elladan and Elrohir and learned much of hunting
and of war, and many secrets of the wild. But he knew naught
of his own ancestry, for his mother did not speak to him of these
things, nor any else in that House; and it was at the bidding of
Elrond that these matters were kept secret. For there was at that
time a Shadow in the East that crept over many lands, and filled
the Wise with foreboding, since they had discovered that this
was indeed the shadow of Sauron, the Dark Lord that had
returned to Middle-earth again, and that he desired to find the
One Ring that Isildur took, and sought to learn if any heir of
Isildur yet lived upon earth; and the spies of Sauron were many.
But at length, when Aragorn was twenty years of age, it
chanced that he returned to Imladris ...
I leave the original manuscript here, for this is sufficient to show the
nature of its relation to the published text: the latter being marked by
a general reduction, compression of what was retained and omission
of allusive passages, notably the story of Celebrian.(2) But as will be
seen, the reason for this was not, or was not primarily, the result of a
critical view taken by my father of the telling of the tale, but of the use
to which he later thought of putting it.
From this point the final version offers no contradiction to the
original text, and in fact remains closer to it than in the part that I have
cited,(3) until the plighting of troth by Aragorn and Arwen on the hill
of Kerin Amroth (RK p. 341); soon after this, however, it diverges
altogether.
And there upon that hill they looked east to the shadow and
west to the twilight, and they plighted their troth and were glad.
Yet many years still lay between them.(4)
For when Elrond learned the choice of his daughter he did not
forbid it; but he said to Aragorn: 'Not until you are come to
your full stature shall you wed with Arwen Undomiel, and she
shall not be the bride of any less than a king of both Gondor and
Arnor.'
But the days darkened in Middle-earth, as the power of
Sauron grew, and in Mordor the Dark Tower of Barad-dur rose
ever taller and stronger. And though Aragorn and Arwen at
times met briefly again their days were sundered. For the time
drew on now to the War of the Ring at the end of that age of the
world ...
There follows now a long passage (more than 500 words, with a
part of it rejected and replaced by a new version) in which the history
of the war is given in summary: telling of Mithrandir and the
Halflings, the doubts of the Wise, the Ringwraiths, the Company of
the Ring, and the quest of the Ringbearer; and then more expressly of
Aragorn, of the Paths of the Dead, the Pelennor Fields, the battle
before the Morannon, and his crowning at the gates of Minas Tirith.
At the end of this the tale moves quickly to its conclusion.
And when all this was done Elrond came forth from Imladris
and Galadriel from Lorien, and they brought with them Arwen
Undomiel Evenstar of her people. And she made the choice of
Luthien, to become mortal and abide in Middle-earth, and she
was wedded to Aragorn Arathornsson, King of Gondor and
Arnor, and she was Queen and Lady of Elves and Men.
Thus ended the Third Age. Yet it is said that bitterest of all the
sorrows of that age was the parting of Arwen and Elrond. For
they were sundered by the Sea and by a doom beyond the end
of the world. For when the Great Ring was unmade the Three
Rings of the Elves failed also, and Elrond was weary of Middle-
earth at last and departed seeking Celebrian, and returned never
again. But Arwen became a mortal woman, and yet even so it
was not her lot to die until she had lost all that she gained. For
though she lived with Aragorn for five score years after and
great was their glory together, yet at the last he said farewell and
laid him down and died ere old age unmanned him. But she
went from the city and from her children, and passed away to
the land of Lothlorien, and dwelt there alone under the fading
trees: for Galadriel also was gone and Lorien was withering.
And then at last, it is said, she laid herself to rest upon Kerin
Amroth; and there was her green grave, until all the world was
changed, and all the days of her life utterly forgotten by men
that came after, and elanor and nifredil bloomed no more east
of the Sea.(5)
This earliest manuscript was followed by a fair copy of it in type-
script ('B'), in which only a few and minor changes were introduced.(6)
But the whole of the latter part of it, from the beginning of the account
of the War of the Ring and its origins, was struck out, and my father
clipped to the typescript new pages, in which he extended that account
to nearly twice its original length. Most of this new version was then
again rewritten, at even greater length, and attached as a rider to the
typescript. It was now much less of a resume than it was at first, and
its purpose in the work as a whole is clearly seen. 'It was the part of
Aragorn,' my father wrote, 'as Elrond foresaw, to be the chief Captain
of the West, and by his wisdom yet more than his valour to redress the
past and the folly of his forefather Isildur.' I cite a part of it from this
final form.
Thus the War of the Ring began; and the shards of the sword
of Elendil were forged anew, and Aragorn Arathorn's son arose
and fulfilled his part, and his valour and wisdom were revealed
to Men. Songs were made after in Gondor and Arnor concern-
ing his deeds in that time which long were remembered, but are
not here full-told. It was not his task to bear the burden of the
Ring, but to be a leader in those battles by which the Eye of
Sauron was turned far from his own land and from the secret
peril which crept upon him in the dark. Indeed, it is said that
Sauron believed that the Lord Aragorn, heir of Isildur, had
found the Ring and had taken it to himself, even as his fore-
father had done, and arose now to challenge the tyrant of
Mordor and set himself in his place.
But it was not so, and in this most did Aragorn reveal his
strength; for though the Ring came indeed within his grasp, he
took it not, and refused to wield its evil power, but surrendered
it to the judgement of Elrond and to the Bearer whom he
appointed. For it was the hard counsel of Elrond that though
their need might seem desperate and the time overlate, nonethe-
less the Ring should even now be taken in secret, if it might be,
to the land of their Enemy and there cast into the fire of Mount
Doom in Mordor where it was made. Aragorn guided the Ring-
bearer on the long and perilous journey from Imladris in the
North, until he was lost in the wild hills and passed beyond the
help of his friends. Then Aragorn turned to war and the defence
of the City of Gondor, Minas Tirith upon Anduin, the last
bulwark of the westlands against the armies of Sauron.
In all this time, while the world darkened and Aragorn was
abroad in labour and danger, Arwen abode in Imladris; and
there from afar she watched over him in thought, and in hope
under the Shadow she wrought for him a great and royal stan-
dard, such as only one might display who claimed the lordship
of the Numenoreans and the inheritance of Elendil and Isildur.
And this she sent to him by the hands of his kinsfolk, the last of
the Dunedain of the North; and they came upon Aragorn on the
plain of Rohan, after the battles in which Saruman the traitor
was overcome and Isengard destroyed, and they delivered to
Aragorn the standard of Arwen and her message; for she bade
him look to the peril from the sea, and to take the Paths of
the Dead. Now this was a way beneath the White Mountains of
Gondor that no man dared to tread, because of the fell wraiths
of the Forgotten Men that guarded it. But Aragorn dared to take
that way with the Grey Company of the North, and he passed
through, and so came about by the shores of the sea, unlooked-
for by foe or by friend. Thus he captured the ships of the Enemy,
and came up out of the deep by the waters of Anduin to the
succour of Gondor in the hour of its despair; for the city of
Minas Tirith was encircled by the armies of Mordor and
was perishing in flame. Then was fought and won beyond
hope the great battle of the Fields of Pelennor, and the Lord
of the Black Riders was destroyed; but Aragorn unfurled the
standard of Arwen, and in that day men first hailed Aragorn as
king.
At the end of this account of Aragorn's commanding significance in
the War of the Ring, the revised ending of the story in the typescript B
concludes with his farewell to Arwen at his death almost exactly as it
stands in Appendix A.(7) The original manuscript pages in which my
father first set down this inspired passage are preserved. He wrote
them so fast that without the later text scarcely a word would be
interpretable.
The revised text in B ends with the words 'Here endeth the tale of
the Elder Days'. My father altered this in manuscript to 'Here endeth
the Tale, and with the passing of the Evenstar all is said of the Elder
Days.'
Briefly to recapitulate, the typescript B as originally made had been
scarcely more than a clear text of the original rough manuscript A.
The latter part of it was rewritten and expanded (Aragorn's part in the
War of the Ring, his dying words with Arwen) and incorporated into
the typescript. My father then made a further typescript ('C'), which
was a fair copy of the text as it now stood in B, much of it indeed
scarcely necessary. At this stage, therefore, none of the compression
and small stylistic changes that distinguish the original manuscript
from the final form in Appendix A had yet entered. It still began 'Ere
the Elder Days were ended', still included the story of Celebrian, and
of course the major element of Aragorn's part in the War of the Ring;
in relation to the final version all it lacked was Aragorn's parting from
his mother Gilrain (RK p. 342).
It is hard to say how my father saw Aragorn and Arwen at that time,
when he clearly felt that it was in finished form, or where it should
stand. He took great pains with the story of Aragorn which was after-
wards lost. He ended it with great finality: 'Here endeth the Tale, and
with the passing of the Evenstar all is said of the Elder Days.' Can it
have been his intention that it should stand as the final element of The
Lord of the Rings?
The subsequent history is very curious. I have mentioned (p. 258)
that when writing the narrative of the North Kingdom he experi-
mented with the introduction of the story of Aragorn and Arwen.
This was to follow the account of how, when King Elessar came to
the North, Hobbits from the Shire would visit him in his house in
Annuminas (RK p. 324); and it enters on the typescript page with
extraordinary abruptness (even allowing for the device of supposed
extracts from written sources to account for such transitions):
... and some ride away with him and dwell in his house as long as
they have a mind. Master Samwise the Mayor and Thain Peregrin
have been there many times.
Arador was the grandfather of the King....
It may seem that my father did not know what to do with the story, or
perhaps rather, did not know what it might be possible to do with it.
But it was here, strangely enough, that the abbreviation and com-
pression and stylistic 'reduction' that distinguishes the final form of
Aragorn and Arwen from the original version first entered. The text in
these abandoned pages of 'The Realms in Exile' is (if not quite at all
points) that of the story in Appendix A.(8) It extended only to the words
'She shall not be the bride of any Man less than the King of both Gon-
dor and Arnor' (RK p. 342); but in manuscript notes accompanying it
my father sketched out a reduction of the story of Aragorn's part in
the War of the Ring to a few lines: for this element in the original story
was obviously wholly incompatible with such a placing of it - which
would seem in any case unsuitable and unsatisfactory. He obviously
thought so too. But it is interesting to see that in the final typescript
from which the story as it stands in Appendix A was printed the page
on which it begins still carries at the top the words 'Master Samwise
the Mayor and Thain Peregrin have been there many times', struck out
and replaced by 'Here follows a part of the Tale of Aragorn and
Arwen'. 'A part', presumably, because so much had gone.
A few changes were made to this last typescript of the tale, among
them the substitution of Estel for Amin (see note 8) at all occurrences,
and the introduction of the departure of Gilraen from Rivendell (RK
p. 342) and her parting with Aragorn, with the words Onen i-Estel
Edain, u-chebin estel anim.
Thus the original design of the tale of Aragorn and Arwen had been
lost; but the actual reason for this was the abandoned experiment of
inserting it into the history of the North Kingdom. I can say no more
of this strange matter.
NOTES.
1. So also Aragorn declared to Arwen on his deathbed that he was
'the latest King of the Elder Days' (RK p. 343), and at the end of
text B of the primary version 'with the passing of the Evenstar all
is said of the Elder Days' (p. 268). See p. 173 and note 7.
2. On the other hand, while the concealment of Aragorn's ancestry
from him in his youth was present in the original form of the tale,
the giving to him of another name (Estel in the final version, see
note 8) was not.
3. The distinction between 'thou' and 'you' was clearly made in the
original manuscript, though sometimes blurred inadvertently, and
it was retained and made precise in the text that followed it: thus
Aragorn uses 'you' to Elrond, and to Arwen at their first meeting,
whereas Elrond and Arwen address him with 'thou, thee'.
4. Thus their words together on Kerin Amroth, concerning the
Shadow and the Twilight, were not yet present; see note 6.
5. The last sentences are put in the present tense in the published text.
But when my father wrote Aragorn and Arwen he did not conceive
it as a citation from an ancient source, and did not place it all
within quotation marks.
6. To this text were added in a rider the words of Aragorn and Arwen
on Kerin Amroth (see note 4); but after Arwen's words the passage
ended: 'For very great was her love for her father; but not yet did
Aragorn understand the fullness of her words.'
7. There were a few differences from the final form. When Arwen
spoke of 'the gift of Eru Iluvatar' which is bitter to receive,
Aragorn answered: 'Bitter in truth. But let us not be overthrown at
the final test, who fought the Shadow of old. In sorrow we must
go, for sorrow is appointed to us; and indeed by sorrow we do but
say that that which is ended is good. But let us not go in despair.'
He named himself 'the latest King of the Elder Days' (see note 1),
but when he was dead 'long there he lay, an image of the splendour
of the Kings of Men in glory undimmed, before the passing of
the Elder Days and the change of the world': this was altered on
the typescript to 'before the breaking of the world'. And at
the moment of his death Arwen did not cry 'Estel, Estel!', for the
name given to him in his youth had not yet arisen (see notes 2
and 8).
8. It was in this text that Aragorn's name in Rivendell entered, but
here it was Amin, not Estel, though likewise translated 'Hope'.
Here Aragorn's mother's name became Gilraen for earlier Gilrain,
and Ivorwen's father Gilbarad disappeared.
(III) THE HOUSE OF EORL.
The history of Appendix A II, The House of Eorl, has no perplexities.
From the early period of my father's work on the Appendices there are
three brief texts, which I will refer to as I, II, and HI, probably written
in close succession, and with the third he had evidently achieved a
satisfactory formulation of all that he wished to say of the rulers of the
Mark. As I judge, he then put it aside for a long time.
It seems that the names of the Kings of the Mark were first set down
on paper in the course of the writing of the chapter The Last Debate:
when Gimli in his story of the Paths of the Dead (at that time placed
at this point in the narrative) spoke of the mailclad skeleton by the
closed door and Aragorn's words 'Here lies Baldor son of Brego', my
father interrupted the story with the list of names, to which he added
dates in the Shire-reckoning (see VIII.408). I concluded that it was
only the dates of Fengel, Thengel, and Theoden that belong with the
writing of the manuscript; but it is a striking fact that already at that
time the dates of those kings were not greatly different from those in
Appendix A (RK p. 350). Particularly noteworthy is that of the birth
of Theoden, S.R.1328 = 2928. In text I it remains 2928 (in both I and
II the dates were all still given in Shire-reckoning, but it is more con-
venient to convert them); so also in II, but corrected to 2948 (the final
date). In the draft manuscript T 3 of the Tale of Years it was 2928, but
in T 4 (p. 239) it was 2948. This is sufficient to show that these early
texts of The House of Eorl were contemporary with those texts of the
Tale of Years.
In the first two texts my father was chiefly concerned with the elab-
oration of the chronology in detail, and they consist only of the names
of the kings and their dates,(1) with notes added to a few of them. In I,
which was written very rapidly on a small sheet, under Eorl the Field
of Celebrant and the gift of Rohan are mentioned, and it is said that
he began the building of Meduseld and died in battle against Easter-
lings in the Wold in 2545; of Brego that he drove them out in 2546,
completed Meduseld, and died of grief for his son Baldor in 2570; of
Aldor the Old that 'he first established Dunharrow as a refuge-fort'. In
the note on Helm, however, is seen the first appearance of the tale told
in Appendix A, very hastily written and still undeveloped:
In his day there was an invasion from west of Dunlanders and of
S. Gondor by pirates and by Easterlings and Orcs. In 2758 in the
Long Winter they took refuge in Helm's Deep.(2) Both his sons Hama
and Haeleth were killed (lost in snow). At his death there was in the
kingdom an upstart king Wulf not of Eorl's line [who] with help of
Dunlanders tried to seize throne. Eventually Frealaf son of Hild his
sister and nearest heir was victorious and became king. A new line
of mounds was started to symbolize break in direct line.
There are no notes on the Kings of the Second Line save Fengel, of
whom it is recorded that he was the youngest son of Folcwine, for his
elder brothers, named here Folcwalda and Folcred, were 'killed in
battle in service of Gondor against Harad'. The final note in I states
that Eomer was the son of Theoden's sister Theodwyn (who does not
appear in the narrative), and that 'he wedded Morwen daughter of
Hurin of Gondor'. This is Hurin of the Keys, who was in command
of Minas Tirith when the host of the West rode to the Black Gate (RK
p. 237); I do not think that there is any other reference to the marriage
of Eomer with his daughter, who was corrected on the text to Lothiriel
daughter of Prince Imrahil.
The second text II was a fair copy of I, with scarcely any change in
content other than in detail of dates. Where in I it was said only that
Eorl was 'born in the North', in II he was 'born in Irenland in the
North'. This name was struck out and replaced by Eotheod, and this
is very probably where that name first appeared (it is found also in
both texts of the original 'Appendix on Languages', p. 34, $14). It was
now further said of Eomer that he 'became a great king and extended
his realm west of the Gap of Rohan to the regions between Isen and
Greyflood, including Dunland.'(3)
The last text (III) of this period was a finely written manuscript
which begins with a brief account of the origin of the Rohirrim in the
Men of Eotheod and their southward migration.
The House of Eorl.
Eorl the Young was lord of the Men of Eotheod. This land lay
near the sources of the Anduin, between the upper ranges of the
Misty Mountains and the northernmost parts of Mirkwood.
Thither the Eotheod had removed some hundreds of years
before from lands further south in the vale of Anduin. They
were originally close kin of the Beornings and the men of the
west-eaves of the forest; but they loved best the plains and wide
fields, and they delighted in horses and in all feats of horseman-
ship. In the days of Garman father of Eorl they had grown to
a numerous people somewhat straitened in the land of their
home.
In the two thousand five hundred and tenth year of the Third
Age a great peril threatened the land of Gondor in the South and
wild men out of the East assailed its northern borders, allying
themselves with Orcs of the mountains. The invaders overran
and occupied Calenardon, the great plains in the north of the
realm. The Steward of Gondor sent north for help, for there had
ever been friendship between the men of Anduin's vale and the
people of Gondor. Hearing of the need of Gondor from afar
Eorl set out with a great host of riders; and it was chiefly by his
valour and the valour of the horsemen of Eotheod that victory
was obtained. In the great battle of the Field of Celebrant the
Easterlings and Orcs were utterly defeated and the horsemen of
Eorl pursued them over the plains of Calenardon until not one
remained.
Cirion Steward of Gondor in reward gave Calenardon to Eorl
and his people, and they sent north for their wives and their
children and their goods, and they settled in that land. They
named it anew the Mark of the Riders, and themselves they
called the Eorlingas; but in Gondor the land was called Rohan,
and the people the Rohirrim (that is the Horse-lords). Thus Eorl
became the first King of the Mark, and he chose for his dwelling
a green hill before the feet of the White Mountains that fenced
in that land at the south.
This is the origin of the opening, greatly expanded, of The House of
Eorl in Appendix A (RK pp. 344-5). In the remainder of the text, the
line of the Kings of the Mark, there was very little further develop-
ment: the story of Helm Hammerhand remained in substance exactly
as it was, and nothing further was said of any of the kings except
Thengel, Theoden, and Eomer. Of Thengel it is recorded that he
married late, and had three daughters and one son, but his long
sojourn in Gondor (and the character of his father Fengel that led to
it) had not emerged. The death of Eomund chief Marshal of the Mark
in an Orc-raid in 3002 is recorded, with the note that 'Orcs at this time
began often to raid eastern Rohan and steal horses', and the fostering
of his children Eomer and Eowyn in the house of Theoden. The note
on Theoden that entered in III was retained almost unchanged in
Appendix A.(4)
A long note was now appended to Eomer, with the same passage as
is found in Appendix A (RK p. 351, footnote) concerning Eowyn,
'Lady of the Shieldarm', and the reference to Meriadoc's name Hold-
wine given to him by Eomer; and the statement of the extent of
his realm appearing in II (p. 271) was rewritten: 'In Eomer's time
the realm was extended west beyond the Gap of Rohan as far as
the Greyflood and the sea-shores between that river and the Isen, and
north to the borders of Lorien, and his men and horses multiplied
exceedingly.'
There is no other writing extant before the final typescript of The
House of Eorl from which the text in Appendix A was printed, save
for a single typescript page. This is the first page of the text, beginning
'Eorl was the lord of the Men of Eotheod', and my father wrote it with
the old version III, given above, before him; but he expanded it almost
to the form that it has in Appendix A.(5) It includes, however, the
following passage (struck out on the typescript) after the words 'the
Riders hunted them over the plains of Calenardhon':
In the forefront of the charge they saw two great horsemen, clad in
grey, unlike all the others, and the Orcs fled before them; but when
the battle was won they could not be found, and none knew whence
they came or whither they went. But in Rivendell it was recorded
that these were the sons of Elrond, Elladan and Elrohir.(6)
There is also the curious point that where in Appendix A it is said that
'Cirion ... gave Calenardhon between Anduin and Isen to Eorl and his
people' this text had (before correction) 'Cirion ... gave Calenardhon,
and Dor Haeron between Entwash and Isen, to Eorl and his people'.
I do not know of any other occurrence of this name, or of any other
suggestion that the name Calenardhon applied only to the region east
of the Entwash.
The father of Eorl was still named Garman, as in the old version
III (p. 272), and that name appeared in the final text, where it was
emended to Leod.
It is, once again, possible and indeed probable that this page
survived for some reason from a complete or more complete draft,
which has been lost; for if no text has been lost it would have to be
concluded that my father composed ab initio on the typewriter the
whole narrative of The House of Eorl, with the stories of Leod and
the horse Felarof, and of Helm Hammerhand, exactly as it stands in
Appendix A.
NOTES.
1. As far as Folcwine the fourteenth king the dates were already in I
almost the same as those in Appendix A, though in many cases
differing by a year; it was only with the last kings that there was
much movement in the dates.
2. Cf. the entry in the text T 4 of the Tale of Years, entry 2758-9
(p. 236): 'Helm of Rohan takes refuge from his enemies in Helm's
Deep in the White Mountains'; and also the note to the Steward
Beren in The Heirs of Elendil, p. 205.
3. In text II Helm's son Haeleth became Haleth; and the eleventh king
Leof was replaced probably at the time of writing by Brytta (on
this see IX.68 and note 11). The sons of Folcwine (Folcwalda and
Folcred in I) were not named in II, but my father changed Fengel
to Fastred; he then added in the names of Folcwine's sons as
Folcred and Fastred and changed that of the king to Felanath,
before finally reverting to Fengel. In the manuscript T 4 of the Tale
of Years (p. 238, year 2885) the death of Folcwine's sons 'in the
service of Gondor' is recorded, and there their names are Folcred
and Fastred.
4. The note on Theoden in III ends with the statement that his only
child and son was Theodred 'whose mother Elfhild of Eastfold
died in childbirth', and a record of Theodred's death in battle
against Saruman. Theoden's name Ednew ('Renewed') is here
given in the Old English form Edniwe; and Minas Tirith is called
Mundberg (although text II has Mundburg: on which see VII.449,
note 7, and VIII.356, note 9).
5. In the First Edition there were no notes, in the list of the Kings of
the Mark, to the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth kings, Brytta,
Walda, and Folca.
6. Cf. p. 236, annal 2510.
(IV) DURIN'S FOLK.
My father's original text of what would become the section Durin's
Folk in Appendix A is extant: a brief, clear manuscript written on
scrap paper entitled Of Durin's Line, accompanied by a genealogy
forming a part of the text. It was corrected in a few points, and one
substantial passage was added; these changes were made, I think, at or
soon after the writing of the manuscript. I give this text in full, with
the changes shown where they are of any significance.
Durin was the name of one of the fathers of all the race of the
Dwarves. In the deeps of time and the beginning of that people
he came to Azanulbizar, the Dimrill Dale, and in the caves above
Kibil-nala [> Kheled-zaram],(1) the Mirrormere, in the east of the
Misty Mountains, he made his dwelling, where after were the
Mines of Moria renowned in song. There long he dwelt: so long
that he was known far and wide as Durin the Deathless. Yet he
died indeed at the last ere the Elder Days were ended, and his
tomb was in Moria; but his line never failed, from father to son,
and ever and anon [> thrice](2) there was born an heir to that
house so like unto his Forefather that he received the name of
Durin, being held indeed by the Dwarves to be the Deathless
that returned. It was after the end of the First Age that the great
power and wealth of Moria began, for it was enriched by many
folk and much lore and craft, when the ancient cities of Nogrod
and Belegost were ruined in the change of the western world
and the breaking of Morgoth. And it came to pass that I at the
height of the glory of Moria [> in the midst of the Third Age,
while the wealth of Moria was still undiminished] Durin was
the name of its king, being the second since the Forefather that
had borne that title. And the Dwarves delved deep in his days,
seeking ever for mithril, the metal beyond price that was found
in those mines alone, beneath Barazinbar, the mighty Redhorn
Mountain. But they roused thus from sleep a thing of terror that
had lain hidden at the foundations of the world, and that was
a Balrog of Morgoth. And Durin was slain by the Balrog, and
after him Nain his son was slain, and the glory of Moria passed,
and its people were destroyed or fled far away. For the most part
they passed into the North; but Thrain Nain's son, the king by
inheritance, came to Erebor, the Lonely Mountain, nigh to the
eastern eaves of Mirkwood, and established his realm for a
while.
But Gloin his grandson [> Thorin his son] removed and
abandoned Erebor, and passed into the far North where the
most of his kin now dwelt. But it came to pass that dragons
arose and multiplied in the North, and made war upon the
Dwarves, and plundered their works and wealth; and many of
the Dwarves fled again southward and eastward. Then Thror
Dain's son, the great-great-grandson of Thrain, returned to
Erebor and became King-under-the-Mountain, and prospered
exceedingly, having the friendship of all that dwelt near,
whether Elves or Men or the birds and beasts of the land.
But Smaug the Golden heard rumour of his treasure and came
upon him at unawares, and he descended upon the Mountain in
flame, and destroyed all that region, and he entered the deep
halls of the Dwarves and lay there long upon a bed of gold. I
And it is elsewhere told how the Dwarves were avenged,
[> From the sack and the burning Thror escaped, and being
now homeless he returned to Moria, but there was slain in
the dark by an Orc. Thrain his son and Thorin his grandson
gathered then the scattered folk of Durin's race and made war
on the Orcs of the Misty Mountains in revenge for Thror. They
were victorious but their people were so diminished that they
could not and dared not re-enter Moria. Dain their kinsman
went away to the Iron Hills, but Thrain and Thorin became
wanderers. Thrain, it is said, was the possessor of the last of the
Seven Rings of the Dwarf-lords of old, but he was captured by
the Sorcerer and taken to Dol Guldur, and there perished in
torment. Elsewhere is told of the wanderings of Thorin Oaken-
shield, last of the direct line of Durin,(3) in search of revenge and
the restoration of his fortune; and how by the help of Gandalf
the Grey he was indeed avenged at last,](4) and Smaug was slain,
and after the Battle of Five Armies the kingship under the
Mountain was restored. Yet Thorin Oakenshield, grandson of
Thror, was slain in that battle, and the right line was broken,
and the crown passed to Dain, a kinsman of Thorin. And the
line of Dain and the wealth and renown of the kingship endured
in Erebor until the world grew old, and the days of the Dwarves
were ended.
In this text and its accompanying genealogical table (which I have
here redrawn) it is seen that an important advance had been made
from the text T 4 of the Tale of Years, where it was told under the year
2590 that Thror 'founded the realm of Erebor' (p. 236): as I said in
a note on that entry, 'the history of Thror's ancestors had not yet
emerged'.(5) Here that history is present, but not yet precisely in the final
form; for the names of 'the kings of Durin's folk' in the genealogical
table here run Thorin I: Gloin: Dain I, whereas in that in Appendix
A they are Thorin I: Gloin: Oin: Nain II: Dain I; thus in the present
text Thror is called 'the great-great-grandson of Thrain [I]'. While the
history was at this stage the corrections and additions were made to
T 4: see p. 252, The Dwarves.
Various names found in the later genealogy are absent here, Thror's
brother Fror and Thorin Oakenshield's brother Frerin; most notably,
the brother of Dain I is not Borin but Nar (and of his descendants only
Oin and Gloin are shown). Nar was the name of the sole companion
of Thror on his ill-fated journey to Moria (RK pp. 354 - 5), who
brought to Thrain the news of his father's slaying by Azog; he is called
'old', but there is no suggestion that he was Thror's uncle. Since Nar
is an Old Norse dwarf-name (occurring in the Voluspa), and since
there is no evidence that the story of Thror's death (apart of course
from the fact of his having been killed in Moria by an Orc) had yet
emerged, it seems unlikely that there was any connection between the
two. - It will also be seen that while Thorin III appears, Durin the Last
does not.
This text was followed by a second version, a well-written and
scarcely corrected manuscript with the title Of Durin's Race, very
similar in appearance to text III of The House of Eorl (p. 272) and
probably contemporary with it. So closely did my father preserve the
original text (as emended and expanded) that I think that it must have
followed at once, or at any rate after no long interval.
The passage added to the first version was slightly filled out and
improved, but the only difference worth noticing here lies in the sen-
tences following the words 'made war on the Orcs of the Misty Moun-
tains in revenge for Thror', which now read: 'Long and deadly was
that war, and it was fought for the most part in dark places beneath
the earth; and at the last the Dwarves had the victory, and in the Battle
before the Gate of Moria ten thousand Orcs were slain. But the
Dwarves suffered also grievous loss and his folk were now so dimin-
ished that Thrain dared not to enter Moria, and his people were
dispersed again.' The only really significant difference from the first
version, however, lies in the final sentence, which became:
And the line of Dain prospered, and the wealth and renown
of the kingship was renewed, until there arose again for the
last time an heir of that House that bore the name of Durin,
and he returned to Moria; and there was light again in deep
places, and the ringing of hammers and the harping of harps,
until the world grew old and the Dwarves failed and the days
of Durin's race were ended.
Thus it was here that 'Durin the Last' emerged, and it is said of him
that he returned from Erebor to Moria and re-established it (as is said
in the accompanying genealogical table). To this my father never
referred again; as Robert Foster noted in The Complete Guide to
Middle-earth, 'There is no mention of a recolonization of Khazad-
dum in the Fourth Age, despite the death of the Balrog.' It is imposs-
ible to discover whether my father did in fact reject this idea, or
whether it simply became 'lost' in the haste with which the Appendices
were finally prepared for publication. The fact that he made no refer-
ence to 'Durin VII and Last', though he appears in the genealogy in
Appendix A, is possibly a pointer to the latter supposition.
There are two copies of the genealogical table accompanying the
second version, but they are essentially the same: my father made the
second one simply because he had not left enough space in the first and
the names on the right-hand side had to be cramped (as with the other
'finished' manuscripts of that time he clearly intended this to be in
publishable form as it stood, or at any rate to be in a form from which
a perfectly accurate typescript could be made). In these tables he did
little more than copy the preceding version (p. 277), but there are
certain differences. He retained 'seven generations' between Durin the
Deathless and Durin III of Moria, but carefully erased 'seven' and
replaced it by 'twelve' (later pencilling 'many'). The name Nar of the
brother of Dain I was replaced by Borin, and where the original table
only marks 'two generations' between Nar and Oin and Gloin this is
now filled out as in the final table, with Fundin the father of Balin and
Dwalin and Groin the father of Oin and Gloin; but a space is left blank
for Borin's son Farin. The notes and dates in the original table remain
the same, with no additions that need be recorded, save 'Balin
returned to Moria and there perished (2994)', and the same note con-
cerning Ori, Nori, Dori, Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur as appears in the
final genealogy. Thorin III is now called 'Stonehelm', and 'Durin the
Last' is shown as his son, 'who re-established the Realm of Moria';
beneath his name is a dotted arrow (as beneath Thorin III in the orig-
inal table) indicating unnamed descendants.
There is no other writing on this subject from the early period of
work on the Appendices. But unlike the textual situation in the case of
the Northern Line of the Realms in Exile and of The Home of Eorl, in
which the final typescripts have virtually no antecedents (see pp.
257-8, 273-4), a substantial part of Durin's Folk is extant in a draft
typescript leading directly to that sent to the printer. My father did
indeed achieve in that draft a form that required little further work,
but it was achieved through much rewriting as he typed.(6) This under-
lines, I think, the extreme improbability that those other texts came
into being at once in a form that required scarcely any further change;
and therefore supports the conclusion that a good deal of the late
drafting in typescript has been lost.
But in this case, at any rate, the loss of the draft typescript would
have done little more than distort the textual development in some
details; it would have deprived this history only of the Dwarvish name
Zigilnad of the Silverlode (cf. Zirak-zigil 'Silvertine', VII.174-5, note
22) - in itself surprising, in view of Kibil-nala in The Lord of the Rings
(see note 1).
The draft typescript, however, became rough manuscript, though
still closely approaching the final form (RK pp. 356-7), with the story
of the great burning of the dead at the end of the Battle of Azanulbizar,
and the departure of Thrain and Thorin Oakenshield to Dunland and
afterwards to a new home in exile in the Blue Mountains, where they
prospered, though forced to work with iron. This section ends, as in
the published text, 'But, as Thror had said, the Ring needed gold to
breed gold, and of that or any other precious metal they had little or
none.' My father drew a line here, as if the text were completed; but
the mention of the Ring of Thrain led him to say something further
about it. From this point the manuscript becomes rougher, and as it
proceeded he wrote so fast that it is only barely legible and with much
difficulty; and from this point also the published text soon departs
from it altogether.
This Ring was the last of the Seven. It may well be that this was
known to Sauron, and that the singular misfortunes of his
House were due to that. For the days were passed when it would
bring profit, but demanded payment rather, and its possession
brought only the hate of Sauron. For the Dwarves had proved
hard to tame. They were too tough, being made of a purpose to
resist such onslaughts of evil will and power, and though they
could be slain or broken they could not be made into shadows
or slaves of any other will; and for like reason their lives were
little affected, to live either longer or shorter because of the
Ring.(7) The more did Sauron hate them. Nonetheless each pos-
sessor kept his ring as a secret unless he surrendered it; and
though those about him doubtless guessed it, none knew for
certain that Thrain had the Ring.
Partly by the very power of the Ring therefore Thrain after
some years became restless and discontented. He could not put
the thought of gold and gems out of his mind. Therefore at last
when he could bear it no longer his heart turned again to Erebor
and he resolved to return. He said little to Thorin of what was
in his heart. But with Balin and Dwalin and a few others he
arose and said farewell and departed (2841).
Little indeed is known of what happened to him afterwards.
It would seem (from afterknowledge) that no sooner was he
abroad with few companions (and certainly after he came at
length back into Rhovanion) he was hunted by the emissaries
of Sauron. Wolves pursued him, orcs waylaid him, evil birds
shadowed his path, and the more he tried to go north the more
he was driven back. One dark night, south of Gladden and the
eaves of Mirkwood, he vanished out of their camp, and after
long search in vain his companions gave up hope (and returned
to Thorin). Only long after was it known that he had been taken
alive and brought to the pits of Dol Guldur (2845). There he
was tormented and the Ring taken from him; and there at last
(2850) he died.(8)
So it would seem that Moria had ended and the line of Durin.
After the sack of Erebor Thorin Oakenshield was but 24 (and
not yet war-worthy according to Dwarf-custom); but he was 53
at Nanduhirion, and there fought in the van of the assault. But
as has been told the first assault was thrown back, and Thrain
and Thorin were driven for refuge in a thicket that grew in the
valley not far from Kheledzaram before the great burning.
There Frerin Thrain's son fell and Fundin his cousin and many
others, and both Thrain and Thorin were wounded. Thorin's
shield was cloven and he cast it away, and hewing with an axe
a branch of an oak tree he held it in his left hand to ward off the
strokes of his foes or to wield as a club. Thus he got his name,
or also because in memory of this he bore ever after at his back
a shield made of oak wood without colour or device, and vowed
to do so until he was hailed again as king.(9)
When Thrain went away Thorin was 95, a great dwarf of
proud bearing and full manhood. Maybe because rid of the
Ring, Thorin long remained in Ered Luin, labouring and jour-
neying and gathering such wealth as he could, until his people
had fair houses in the hills, and were not [? ill content], though
in their songs they spoke ever of the Lonely Mountain and the
wealth and bliss of the Great Hall and the light of the Arken-
stone. But the years lengthened, and the embers of his heart
began to grow hot as Thorin brooded on the wrongs of his
house and people. Remembering too that Thror had lain upon
him the vengeance due to Smaug.
But Erebor was far away and his people only few; and he had
little hope that Dain Ironfoot would help in any attempt upon
the dragon. For Thorin thought ever after the manner of his
kingly forefathers, counting forces and weapons and the
chances of war, as his hammer fell on the red iron in his forge.
It was at this point that Mithrandir entered the story of the
House of Durin. He had before troubled himself little with
Dwarves. He was a friend to those of good will, and liked well
the exiles of Durin's Folk that dwelt in the west. But on a time
it happened that Mithrandir was passing west through Eriador
(journeying to see Cirdan, maybe, or to visit the Shire which
he had not entered for some years) when he fell in with
Thorin Oakenshield going the same way, and they spoke much
together on the road, and at Bree where they rested.
In the morning Mithrandir said to Thorin: 'I have thought
much in the night. Now if that seems good to you I will come
home with you for a while and we will talk further in greater
privacy.' From this meeting there came many events of great
moment in the matter of the War of the Ring. Indeed it led to
the finding of the Ring and to the involvement of the Shire-folk
and the means whereby the Ring was at last destroyed. Where-
fore many have supposed that all this Mithrandir purposed and
foresaw. But we believe that is not so. For Frodo wrote this
passage in the first copy of the Red Book, which because of its
length was not included in the tale of the War: Those were glad
days when after the crowning we dwelt in the fair house in
Minas Tirith with Gandalf ...
I have given the text thus far in order to make clearer than I did,
or indeed was able to do, in the section The Quest of Erebor in
Unfinished Tales how my father originally introduced the story of
Gandalf and Thorin, and the taking of Bilbo on the journey to the
Lonely Mountain, into the appendix on Durin's Folk. At that time I
was unaware of this text, and have only recently put it together from
its dismembered parts, not having realised what they were. I assumed
that the manuscript which I called A in Unfinished Tales was
the original text; but the story that follows from the point where I
have left it above was my father's first expression of the idea, and
A was a (moderately) fair copy, much rewritten if not essentially
changed.(10)
He did a great deal of work on this story before 'it had to go', as he
said years later (Unfinished Tales p. 11). From the manuscript A he
developed the typescript B (of which long extracts were given in Un-
finished Tales), and B was clearly designed to fit into the text of
Durin's Folk as it existed by then (see Unfinished Tales pp. 327-8).(11) I
shall not follow here the evolution in expression and structure through
the texts, but I give two notes that belong with the original manu-
script, the first of which shows my father's initial thoughts on the story
before he wrote it.
From 2842 onwards Thorin lives in exile, but a good many
of Durin's Folk gather to him in Ered Luin. They are reduced
to poverty (since mines are poor) and travel about as metal-
workers. Thorin begins to think of vengeance on Smaug and
recovery of his wealth, but he can only envisage this in terms of
war - a gathering of all his people and an attempt to slay
Smaug. But it is difficult to do. The Iron Hills are a long way
away and elsewhere Durin's Folk are widely scattered.
Gandalf now takes a hand. (Since his action led ultimately to
the finding of the Ring, and the successful part played by the
Hobbits in its destruction, many suppose that all this was in his
conscious purpose. Probably not. He himself would say he was
'directed', or that he was 'meant' to take this course, or was
'chosen'.(12) Gandalf was incarnate, in [?real] flesh, and therefore
his vision was obscured: he had for the most part (at any rate
before his 'death') to act as ordinary people on reason, and prin-
ciples of right and wrong.) His immediate conscious purposes
were probably various. Largely strategic. He knows it is Sauron
in Dol Guldur.(13) Knowing the situation in Gondor he may very
well have feared the reoccupation of Mordor (but not yet). At
present he is concerned with Lorien and Rivendell - Sauron will
certainly proceed to war. The presence of Smaug and the depres-
sion of Men in the North makes an attack that way toward
Angmar and against Rivendell likely. Also he knew and
approved of Durin's Folk. Also he was very fond of the Shire-
folk and appreciated ..... Bilbo. He wished the Shire-folk to
be 'educated' (14) before evil days came, and chose Bilbo (un-
attached) as an instrument.
In the second passage he was revolving questions arising from
Gandalf's finding of Thrain dying in Dol Guldur.
'Your plan is grandiose and belongs to an earlier day. If you
wish to regain your wealth or any part of it, you will have to go
yourself - with a small band of your most faithful kinsfolk and
following.' [Struck out: He then reveals to Thorin that] Why did
he not then (or much earlier) reveal to Thorin that he had met
Thrain in Dol Guldur? Two answers. He had not met him
[Thorin] and did not even know where he was. From 2850 on
his chief concern had been with Dol Guldur (Saruman) and the
Council. He had not been west for a long time (Hobbit pp.
13-14. The Old Took died in 2920, so Gandalf had not in 2942
been in the Shire for 22 years and then probably only briefly).(15)
He was probably unaware who the Dwarf was in Dol Guldur,
since the 7th Ring would be no clue (Dwarves kept the
possession of Rings very secret), and Thrain did not know his
own name (Hobbit p. 35). It was probably only from Thorin's
conversation that he guessed - and produced the evidence
characteristically at a suitable chance.
In the earliest version of the story (and also in the second text A)
Gandalf made no mention of his finding Thrain in Dol Guldur until
the very end of the text, in response to a question from Merry about
the map and the key; and my father clearly introduced it when the
problem discussed in this note presented itself.
'But about that map and key,' said Merry. 'They proved use-
ful, but you never said anything to Thorin about this before-
hand. Why, you must have kept them by your own account 100
years without a word!'
'I did,' said Gandalf, 'very nearly. 91 to be exact. But I assure
you I could have done little else. Thrain did not know his own
name when I found him; and I certainly did not know his. By
what toughness of resistance he had kept the key and map
hidden in his torments I don't know. Maybe having got the Ring
Sauron troubled no further, but left him to rave and die. But
of course the map told me the key had something to do with
Erebor. But it was far from my concerns at the time. And for
long after I was concerned with other matters, with Saruman
and his strange reluctance to disturb Sauron in Dol Goldur.
It was not until my meeting with Thorin and conversation that
I suddenly guessed who the dying Dwarf must have been. Well,
well, after that I kept the things back to the last moment. They
just turned the scale, and began to make Thorin accept the
idea.'(16)
Among other material for Durin's Folk are many versions of the
genealogical table, beginning with one associated with the draft type-
script in which the original form (see pp. 276 - 8) was still retained,
with only five generations between Durin VI (formerly Durin III) and
Thror. The addition of (the first) Oin and Nain II arose when my
father formulated a specific pattern of aging and life-span on a page
headed 'Notes on Chronology of Durin's Line', from which I cite some
extracts, very slightly edited for clarity.
Dwarves of different 'breeds' vary in their longevity. Durin's
race were originally long-lived (especially those named Durin),
but like most other peoples they had become less so during the
Third Age. Their average age (unless they met a violent death)
was about 250 years, which they seldom fell far short of, but
could occasionally far exceed (up to 300).(17) A Dwarf of 300 was
about as rare and aged as a Man of 100.
Dwarves remained young - e.g. regarded as too tender for
really hard work or for fighting - until they were 30 or nearly
that (Dain II was very young in 2799 (32) and his slaying of
Azog was a great feat). After that they hardened and took on the
appearance of age (by human standards) very quickly. By forty
all Dwarves looked much alike in age, until they reached what
they regarded as old age, about 240. They then began to age and
wrinkle and go white quickly (baldness being unknown among
them), unless they were going to be long-lived, in which case the
process was delayed. Almost the only physical disorder they
suffered from (they were singularly immune from diseases such
as affected Men, and Halflings) was corpulence. If in prosper-
ous circumstances, many grew very fat at or before 200, and
could not do much (save eat) afterwards. Otherwise 'old age'
lasted not much more than ten years, and from say 40 or a little
before to near 240 (two hundred years) the capacity for toil
(and for fighting) of most Dwarves was equally great.
This is followed by the information attributed to Gimli concerning
the Dwarf-women, which was preserved in Appendix A (RK p. 360).
There is no difference in substance in the present text, except for the
statements that they are never forced to wed against their will (which
'would of course be impossible'), and that they have beards. This latter
is said also in the 1951 revision of the Quenta Silmarillion (XI.205,
$5).
It is then said that Dwarves marry late, seldom before they are
ninety or more,(18) that they have few children (so many as four being
rare), and continues:
To these they are devoted, often rather fiercely: that is, they may
treat them with apparent harshness (especially in the desire to
ensure that they shall grow up tough, hardy, unyielding), but
they defend them with all their power, and resent injuries to
them even more than to themselves. The same is true of the atti-
tude of children to parents. For an injury to a father a Dwarf
may spend a life-time in achieving revenge. Since the 'kings' or
heads of lines are regarded as 'parents' of the whole group, it
will be understood how it was that the whole of Durin's Race
gathered and marshalled itself to avenge Thror.
Finally, there is a note on the absence of record concerning the
women of the Dwarves:
They are seldom named in genealogies. They join their hus-
bands' families. But if a son is seen to be 110 or so years
younger than his father, this usually indicates an elder daughter.
Thorin's sister Dis is named simply because of the gallant death
of her sons Fili and Kili in defence of Thorin II. The sentiment
of affection for sister's children was strong among all peoples of
the Third Age, but less so among Dwarves than Men or Elves
among whom it was strongest.
The concluding passage in Appendix A, concerning Gimli and
Legolas, was derived from the old text of the Tale of Years (p. 244),
which had now of course been abandoned.
NOTES.
1. Since Kheled-zaram and Kibil-nala as the Dwarvish names of
Mirrormere and Silverlode entered early in the history of the
writing of The Lord of the Rings (see VII.167, 174), it seems clear
that the naming of Mirrormere Kibil-nala here was a slip without
significance, and is unlikely to have any connection with the
curious appearance of the name Zigilnad for Silverlode in the
draft typescript of Durin's Folk (p. 279).
2. 'thrice': the Durin who was slain by the Balrog in Moria is named
in the accompanying genealogical table 'Durin III'.
3. Thorin Oakenshield was not the 'last of the direct line of Durin';
no doubt my father meant that he was the last in the unbroken
descent of the kings from father to son (cf. 'the right line was
broken' a few lines below).
4. This addition was roughly written in the margins, with a number
of corrections, and the passage from 'They were victorious ...'
to 'Dain their kinsman went away to the Iron Hills' is put in the
present tense.
5. The extension of the line beyond Thror appears to have had its
starting-point in my father's explanation of the words on Thror's
Map in. The Hobbit ('Here of old was Thrain King under the
Mountain') as referring not to Thrain son of Thror but to a
remote ancestor also named Thrain: see VII.160.
6. My father's method of composition at this time was to continue
typing, without rejecting anything, as the sentences developed. A
characteristic if extreme case is seen in Dain's words to Thrain at
the end of the Battle of Azanulbizar:
Only I have passed seen looked through the Shadow of the
Gate. Beyond the Shadow it waits for you still. The world must
change and some other power than ours must come, Durin's
Bane before Some other power must come than ours must
come, before Khazad-dum Durin's folk walk again in
By crossing out unwanted words and putting directions on the
typescript he produced the passage that stands in Appendix A
(RK p. 356).
7. In a draft for this passage my father wrote at this point the
following, which was not repeated: 'The Ring-wearer became rich
especially in gold: that is his dealings brought him wealth accord-
ing to what he traded in: if in lead, lead, if in silver, silver, if in
gems, then gems more abundant and of greater size and worth.'
8. This is where the story of how Thrain came to Dol Guldur was
first told.
9. The deaths of Frerin and Fundin, and the retreat to the wood
where Thorin cut the oak-bough from which he got his name (RK
p. 355 and footnote), had not been mentioned in the draft type-
script in the account of the Battle of Azanulbizar. The story that
Thorin carried an unpainted shield of oak wood disappeared.
10. The tone and total effect of the original version, as my father
dashed it down, is rather different from that of the subsequent
texts, where the expression becomes a little more reserved. To
give a single example, when Thorin (later Gloin) sneered at 'those
absurd little rustics down in the Shire' (cf. Unfinished Tales
p. 333), Gandalf riposted: 'You don't know much about those
folk, Thorin. If you think them all that simple because they pay
you whatever you ask for your bits of iron and don't bargain hard
like some Men, you're mistaken. Now I know one that I think
is just the fellow for you. Honest, sensible, and very far from
rash - and brave.'
11. A begins with the words 'In the morning Thorin said to
Mithrandir ...', and continues as in the third version B (Un-
finished Tales p. 328): here it was Thorin who invited Gandalf
to his home in the Blue Mountains, whereas in the earliest text
(p. 282) it was Gandalf who proposed it. I do not know why A
should have begun at this point.
12. There is here a direction to 'see LR I 65171' (read '70'), which was
thus already in print.
13. From this was derived a passage in the earliest version of the
story:
'Well then, I was I suppose "chosen". But as far as I was aware,
I had my reasons for what I did. Don't be abashed if I say that
the chief in my mind was unconcerned with you: it was, well
"strategic". When I met Thorin at Bree I had long known
that Sauron was arisen again in Dol Guldur, and every day I
expected him to declare himself.'
14. 'Educated' is the word that Gandalf used in the original version
of the passage given from the text B in Unfinished Tales p. 331.
'In 2941 I already saw that the Westlands were in for another
very bad time sooner or later. Of quite a different sort. And I
would like the Shire-folk to survive it, if possible. But to do that
I thought they would want something a bit more than they
had had before. What shall I say - the clannish sort of stocky,
sturdy family feeling was not quite enough. They were become
a bit parochial, forgetting their own stories, forgetting their
own beginnings, forgetting what little they had known about
the greatness and peril of the world - or of the allies they had
in it. It was not buried deep, but it was getting buried: memory
of the high and noble and beautiful. In short, they needed edu-
cation! I daresay he was "chosen", and I was chosen to choose
him, but I picked on Bilbo as an instrument. You can't educate
a whole people at once!'
15. The reference is to Gandalf's first appearance in The Hobbit: 'He
had not been down that way under The Hill for ages and ages,
not since his friend the Old Took died, in fact, and the hobbits
had almost forgotten what he looked like.' - On the date of 'The
Quest of Erebor' given here, 2942, see the Note below.
16. It was not until text B of The Quest of Erebor that Gandalf's
account of his finding Thrain in Dol Guldur was moved back in
the story (see Unfinished Tales p. 324), though still in that version
Gandalf returned to it again at the end (ibid. p. 336).
17. It will be found in the genealogical table that the life-span of all
the 'kings of Durin's Folk' from Thrain I to Nain II varied only
between 247 and 256 years, and no Dwarf in the table exceeded
that, save Borin (261) and Dwalin, who lived to the vast age of
340 (the date of his death appears in all the later texts of the table,
although the first to give dates seems - it is hard to make out the
figures - to make him 251 years old at his death).
18. In the genealogical table all the 'kings of Durin's Folk' from
Nain I to Thorin Oakenshield were born either 101 or 102 (in
one case 100) years after their fathers.
Note on the date of the Quest of Erebor.
Among the papers associated with the original manuscript of the story
my father set down some notes headed 'Dates already fixed in printed
narrative are these.'
Bilbo born 2891 (1291). He was visited in 2942 by Thorin II, since
that autumn he was 51 (Lord of the Rings Chapter I): therefore
Battle of Five Armies was in same year, and Thorin II died then.
Thrain must have 'gone off' (to seek Erebor) in 2842 ('a hundred
years ago', Hobbit p. 35). (It is thus assumed that after wandering
he was caught in 2845 and died in dungeons 2850.)
Dain II is said (LR I p. 241) 'to have passed his 250th year' in
3018. He was then, say, 251, therefore he was born in 2767 [the
date given in the genealogy, RK p. 361].
My father had given the date of Bilbo's birth in 2891 in the Tale of
Years (p. 238), and he here referred to it as a date 'fixed in printed
narrative' (The Fellowship of the Ring was published in July 1954,
and The Two Towers in November). But without Volume III the date
is fixed in the following way: Frodo left Bag End in September 3018
(Gandalf's letter that he finally received at Bree was dated 'Midyear's
Day, Shire Year, 1418'), and he left on his fiftieth birthday (FR p. 74),
which was seventeen years after Bilbo's farewell party (when Frodo
was 33); the date of the party was therefore 3001. But that was Bilbo's
111th birthday; and therefore he was born in - 2890. It seems only
possible to explain this as a simple miscalculation on my father's part
which he never checked, - or rather never checked until now, for in
another note among these papers he went through the evidence and
arrived at the date 2890 for Bilbo's birth, and therefore 2941 for
Thorin's visit to him at Bag End. This new date had been reached by
the time that the earliest version of The Quest of Erebor was written.
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